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ILLUSTRATED BT N1TMBR0U8 ElTOSAVmOS AND MAPS. \ X f ■■■ — u. NEW YORK: D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, 1, t, AND S BOND STREET. 1886. irl'l'tf ipif •n~-r-~'-ytrtT4 r^^'^^^^'''~ i ^ -^-- ^ — >. TPW^'fl'"'''*' ■'*1W'^ ^ci::CZ!is5||||g'''i~; ..'ILmJL. :!. ;:Z.iiiilli|||iiii:i i:ili ,: ,. :-„(,iiiii.ii«;n:il!illll ii> ,.,.miiiiiii'i:l'rtllliitii..^,.,iii..,:.ii -i;)i' * ■-^— Ky CONTENTS. m «tti». I. OnfBKAL SURTXT PAa* 1 II. The Nub Basin SI The River, p. 31. Lake Victoria Nyanza, p. 36. The Somerset Nile, p. 37. Lake Alhert Nyanza, p. 39. The White Nile, p. 40. The Blue Nile, p. 47. The Atbara River, p. oO. ' The Nuhian Nile, p. 62. The Lower Nile, p. 67. The Fayum Depression, p. 60. Periodi- cblI Rising of the Nile, p. 69. III. RXOION OF THE OuEAT LaKBB 74 Climate, Flora, Fauna, p. 76. Inhabitants, p. 76. The Ruanda Country, p. 82. The Empire of U-Ganda, p. 82. Religion, Trade, Administration, p. 86. Topography, p. 88. The Kavirondo and Nanda Countries, p. 88. The U-Nyoro Territory, p. 91. IV. Rboiom of thb Uppeb Nile Tribvtakibs 96 Inhabitants, p. 97- The Latuka Country, p. 102. Topography, p. 112. V. SOBAT AND YaL BasINS . • . . . 116 The Gambil and Koma Tribes, p. 116. The Shilluks, p. 119. Topography, p. 122. VI. Abyssinia (Ethiopia) 128 Relief of the Land, Population, p. 123. Historic Retrospect, p. 124. Exploration, p. 126. The Abyssinian Plateau, p. 128. The Ewallas and River Gorges, p. 128. Orographic System, p. 131. The Northern Highlands, p. 131. Hamassen and Simen Uplands, p. 133. The Eastern Border Range, p. 135. Central and Western Highlands, p. 136. The Abyssinian Seaboard, p. 137. Lake Alalbed, p. 137. Climate, p. 139. Flora, p. 142. Fauna, p. 144. Inhabitants, p. 146. Agriculture, p. 154. Arts and Industries, p. 154. Religion and Education, p. 165. Government, p. 169. Topography, p. 161. Gondar, p. 161. Debra-Tabor, p. 163. Magdala, p. 168. Adua, p. 171. Aksum, p. 172. Mas- sawah, p. 178. Dahlak Islands, p. 180. Administrative Divisions, p. 183. VII. Shoa, Danakil, and Nobth Galla States 184 The Shoa Highlands, p. 184. Volcanic Formations, p. 186. The Galla HighlandR, p. 186. \The Afar Countrj-, p. 186. The Awash Basin, p. 187. Climate, Flora and Fauna, p. 188. • Inhabitants, p. 190. The Somali, p. 193. The Gallas, p. 194. Topography, p. 200. Harrar and Zeilah, p. 202. Innarya, p. 213. Yangaro, p. 214. Kaffaland, p. 214. VIII. Uffbr Ndbia 216 Physical and Political Features, p. 217. Gumu, Berta, and Lega Highlands, p. 218. Climate, Flora, Fauna, p. 220. Inhabitants, p. 222. The Funj Race, p. 227. The Kunama and Barea, p. 229. The Bejas, p. 234. Topography, p. 239. Senftr, p. 241. Khartum, p. 244. Naga, Meroe, p. 246. Kassala, p. 249. Berber, p. 262. S^'^ rlC- illM f- '■ ir«»til la- .i IX. KordofAn 247 Physical Featurea, p. 267. Hydrographic System, p. 268. Climate, p. 269. Florn, p. 260. Inhabitants, p. 261. The Nubas, p. 263. Social Usages, p. 267. Topography : ** ■ El-Obeid, p. 266. X. DxR-FdR • 271 Progress of Discovery, p. 272. Physical Features, p. 272. Hydrographic System, p. 274. Flora, p. 276 Fauna, p. 276. Inhabitants, p. 276. Commercial Relations, p. 278. Topography : fil-Fuher, p. 279. XI. Nubia : . 281 The Nubian Coast Range, p. 282. The Nubian Odd Mines, p. 283. The Central High- lands, p. 284. Geological Formations, p. 286. The Bayuda Steppe, p. 287. Climate, ' p. 289. Flora, p. 290. Fauna, p. 291. Inhabitants, p. 292. The Bisharin, p. 296. Topography, ^.291. Dongola, p. 299. Wady-Halfa, p. 309. Korosko, Ibsambul, p. 309. XII. Egypt > i 807 Historic Retrospect, p. 307. Chronology, p. 308. Social Condition of the Ancient Egyptians, p. 309. Present Condition, p. 310. Geographical Exploration, p. 312. Extent and Population, p. 313. The Arabian Range, p. 314. Geology, p. 317. The Libyan Plateau, p. 319. The Petrified Forests, p. 321. The Western Oases, p. 3 :. The Natron Lake», p. 326. The Ldbyan Desert, p. 329. Climate, p. 33 1 . Rainfall, p. 333. Climatic Changes, p. 334. Flora, p. 336. Fauna, p. 338. Inhabitants, p. 341. The Copts, p. 341. The FellahJn, p. 344. The Arabs of Egypt, p. 346. The Levantines, p. 360. Religion, p. 353. Social Usages, p. 366. Slavery, p. 366. Land Tenure, p. 367. Irri- gation, p. 369. The Corvte, p. 361. Conservatism and Progress, p. 362. The 8ue« Canal, p. 383. Topography, p. 373. Philae, p. 373. Edfu, p. 377. Thebes, Luxor, Kamak, p. 379. Denderah, p. 387. Thinis, p. 388. The Great and LitUe Oases, p. 391. Meidum, Saqqarah, p. 398. Memphis, p. 400. T'he Great Pyramids, p. 401. Cairo, p. 406. Barrage of the Nile, p. 413. Suez, p. 416. Tell-el-Kebir, Pithon, p. 417. Port Said, p. 419. Damietta, p. 423. Rosetta, p. 426. Abukir, p. 427. Alexandria, p. 428. Naucratis, p. 436. Agriculture, p. 436. Irrigation, p. 438. Industries, p. 439. Trade, Railways, Telegraphs, p. 440. Government, p. 442. Piospecte, p. 444. Administrative Divisions, p. 446. Appbndix I. Statistical Tables . . . . • • **' „ II. Ethnolooy of Nohth-East Africa • • • • *68 „ in. Eotptian Chronolooy . • *74 Index » . • ■ t* . • . « • • • ••..•• 489 \\ ^mum -1*1^* lorn, . ;' phy: • . 271 281 . 807 . 447 . 459 . 474 . 489 " i p i' i" """ ' M W ILiJ i p ppww^WfWW^WWWIIifflf'^ LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. MAPS FEINTED IN COLOTTBS. 1. North-East Africa 2. Northern Abyssinia . 3. Tho Egyptian Soudaii . rAuB • 16 128 876 4. Cairo and its Environs. if 6. The Delta and Suez Canal . MOB . 400 . 424. PLATES. Biahari Oamel-driTer . . . Frmt\*pu«« The Nile — View taken from the Island of FhilsB .... To face page 6 Group of Nubian Women . .18 Bishari Gum-dealers at Eorosko ... 22 View of Victoria Nyanza taken from Murchison Bay 36 General View of Khartum .... 44 The Nile at the Second Cataract ... 66 Colossal Statues of Memnon .... 68 Banks of the Nile— The Shaduf . . .72 Natives of U-Ganda 92 Murchison Falls 94 Group of Makrakas' 106 General View of Dem Suleiman . . .112 Simen Highlands— View taken from the Lamal- mon Pass 134 Shaikieh Arab and Ethiopian Female Slaves at Khartum ...... 150 The Gimp at Oondar . . . .162 Adua, Capital of Tigr£ . . . . .172 To fane page General V^ -?/ of Massawah Somali M. .. "• -d Wonuin General Vie\t of Ankober Obok — View taken from the Roadstead Primeval Forest at Fazogl Kadi of Khartum and Hadendoa Sheikh Pyramids of Meroe— Southern Ghroop. General View of Suakin . Jobel-Ain Assoan, North Frontier of Nubia . Entrance of the Korosko Route at Abu-Hamed Second. Third, and Fourth Pyramids Libyan Desert— Mirage on the Horizon . 180 192 200 208 220 234 248 264 274 282 286 312 320 Cairo Arabs 346 Sefl Canal at Fidemin-el-Fayum . , . 360 Suez Canal at the Serapeum .... 368 Colossal Statues of the Ramesseum at Thebes . 384 A Street in the Old Town, Cairo . . ,406 The Kait-Bey Mosque, Cairo . ■ . . .410 Citadel of Cairo . . • . .412 G«neial View of Alexandria . . .432 r?» LIST Oi' ILLUBTEATIONS. ILLUSTRATIOlSrS TN TEXT. 7 10 11 14 21 24 no. ,A0« 1. Highland* ami Plateaux of Centnil Africa . 4 •i. Hydrography of Africa according to Mediwval Qeographera ... 6 3. Outflow of Lako Nyanza, according to S|)uko 4. Isothermal Lines of Africa 6. Distribution of the liainfall in Africa 6. Vegetable Zone* in Africa 7. Languages of Africa .... 8. Religions of Africa .... 0. Chief Routes of Explorers in the Interior of Africa (1883) 28 10. Sources of the Nile and Kyanza Plateau . 36 11. From Dufll6 to Lado .... 42 12. Region of the " Sud " .... 43 13. Thk Nile at Khartdm .... 44 14. Meshra-er-Rek in the Zariba Region . 46 16. Biisin of the Nile Affluents ... 51 16. Catvact of Hannek 63 17. Kuibar Cataract 54 18. The Eeiieh Valley on the Route to Koseir . 68 19. Head of the Ibrahimieh Canal ... 69 20. Entrance of the Fayum .... 61 21. Fayum . . . , . , .62 22. Rosetta Mouth 64 23. Damietta Mouth 66 24. Branch of the Nile flowing to Lake Men- zaleh 68 26. Yearly 0«cillation8 of the Nile ... 70 26. Section of the Nile Valley at Siftt . 72 27. U-Eerewe and U-Sukuma .... 78 28. Karagwg 80 29. South U-Qanda . . . . .86 80. U-Ganda : RuBAOA, Pbinoipal RsnoENOB OF M'Tbsa 90 31. U-Nyoro 92 32. Water-parting between the Nile and Congo 96 33. Skt'li Musicians 100 34. Bahi Smiths 102 35. Routes of Explorers East of the Bahr-el- Jebel . . .103 36. Chief Routes of Explorers in the Zariba Region HO 37. Inhabitants of the Zariba Region .114 88. Confluence of tue Sobat and Yal . .118 wo. rAos 39. Shiliuk Ttpi 120 40. Chief Routes of Abyssinian Explorers 127 41. Profile of Abyssinia from East to West . 129 42. Davkzut Fallh, nbau Samaha (Debra- Tabok) 130 43. Northern Spurs of the Abyssinian High- lands 183 44. The Simen Highland^ . .188 46. I.akes of East Abyssinia .134 40. Lake of Alalbed ... .138 47. Intermediate Abyssinian Plateaux and ' Valleys 140 48. Inhabitants of Abyssinia . . . lAl 49. Oondar 162 50. Debra-Tabor 104 61. Mtthdera-Mariain 166 62. Koaruta and Southern Shore of Lake Tana 106 63. Magdala 169 64. Adua and Aksum 172 66. Aksum 173 66. Kumaiili Valley 176 67. Bogos Territory 177 68. Massawah 179 59. Annesley Bay 182 60. Routes of the Chief Explorers in the Lower AwHsh Region 180 61. Somali Gibl 103 62. Routes of the Chief Explorers in South Abyssinia 196 63. Oaua Girl 196 64. Populationa of South Abyssinia . . 190 65. Chief Towns of East Shoa . .201 66. Harrar . . . . . .204 67. Zeila 206 68. Course of the Lower Awash . . . 206 69. Tajurah Bay and Lake Assal . . . 207 70. Obok 208 71. Assab 200 72. Routes of the Chief Explorers in Taka and Neighbouring Districts . . . 217 73. The Lega Country 223 74. Inhabitants of the Blue Nile . . .226 76. Inhabitants of Taka and Neighbouring Districts 232 76. Shukuriih Dua 286 LIST OP IIJiirHTUATIONS 1« PAO« 120 127 129 130 132 133 134 138 140 m 164 166 166 169 172 173 176 177 179 182 189 193 no. 77. 78. 79. 80. 81. 82. 83. 84. 86. 86. 87. 88. 80. 90. 91. 02. 93. 04. 96. 96. 07. 08. 00. 100 101, 102 103. 104 106. 106 107 108 100 PAiiK no, Faiogl Oold Minos 240 I 110. 8enar 242 ! 111. Confliienoe of the Two Nilen . . 248 i Khartum 246 I 1 12 Pyramids of tleroS 247 Kasula 361 113. Berber 263 | 114. 8uakin in 1882 264 I Suakin Uplands 266 j 116. Central Kordofan 262 El-Obeid 267 116. Central Region of Dar-Fdr . .273 117. Mineral Region of the Etbai Uplands . 282 Nubian Oold Mines 284 Korosko Desert 28fi 118. Bayuda Steppe 287 110. Dongola and the Third Cataract . 301 120. Thk Trmplr Of Abv-Simbil, in Nubia 806 Density of the Population of Egypt . . 316 121. AiwuAN : Anuiint Qcahry, now aban- 122. DONBU 317 123. Chains of Oases West of Egypt . . 324 124. The Natron Lakes 327 126. Isothermal Lines and Rainfall of Egypt 386 , EoYPTiAM Typb : Bas-Rbusfornambnt- IMO TKB TOUB OF SkEIKH AbD-BL- 126. OuBNAH, AT Thrbbs . .343 127. I ViLLAOB Huts 345 128. . A Bbdouin 347 120. Arab Tribes in Egypt .348 , A ViLLAGB SflBIKH . . . .340 130. Religions of Egypt 364 131. Domains of the Dairah in the Delta . . 368 132. Trajan's Oanal 366 133. , Sues in the year 1800 . . .366 134. . Proposed Freshwater Oanal from Suez to 186. Alexandria 368 136. Lake Timstth 370 Or«at International Routes of the Old World AsMuan and the First Cataract before the Opening of the liailwny . Ruins of Thebes RuiNH oi' Thehks: Phopylor, or Noiith- BKN OaTB Enthancr to thb Vai.lry of thb Ruyal Tombs Kosseir 386 Abvdoh : Bas-Rblibf in thb Tbmplb of 8bti I., hbfrbsbntino a Scbnb of Adobation .... Rbd Pottbry of Siut ... Ghscs of Khargeh and Dakhel . Undbbohound Paisaob at Mbhbndi nbah Mahabraka, Nubia The Biwah Oases .... Pyramid of Mbihum AsoBNT OF thb Obbat Pyramid Thb Sphinx MVSHAKABIBH, WITH ScBBBN IN FroRT to ooncraii thb Inmatbs FBOM THBIK Nriohbourm . ■ t. : t MosauB of Mohammbd Au . Barrage of the Nile Suez Entrance to the Wady TumilAt, Tell-el- Kebir Port Said The San Morass Damietta Abukir and Alexandria .... Alexandria ... . 481 Alexandria and Lake Mariut . 438 Egyptian Railways . . . . .441 .371 376 880 382 384 380 301 392 393 304 300 402 406 4ii 414 416 417 420 422 424 439 • • 106 106 100 201 204 206 206 207 208 200 217 223 236 232 2M ife/J! ppp »«^ «'' . » 'i ; * #.-■• >) '?!* ( V it. ._. _ U.- i > ' i * 1 . ,r.vC .•] 'M III lfftliirtii»w*«Biwaiii#wiB iM iiiiiiiiiiiii Miiiini mmmmg'Omim^mgfm'mmr^ THE EARTH AND ITS INHABITANTS. NORTH-EAST AFRICA. CHAPTER I. ' * GENERAL SURVEY. BOM the very name of Africa, it is evident that down to a compara- tively receut period this continent still formed part of the unknown world. It was the Libya of the Greeks, a region of undefined limits towards the south and the setting sua. Amongst other mytholo- gical or poetic titles, they also gave it the vag^e designations of Eskhate, or " The World's End," and Hesperia, or " Western Land," a term which was also applied to Italy, and then to Spain, and which, under the Arab form of Maghreb, has become the modem name of Mauritania. The term Africa itself, now applied to the whole continent, is of doubtful origin. Whether it designated the ancient Carthage in the sense of the " Separated," or " Colony," recalling the supremacy of the Phcenioian Tyre, or whether it was a collective name of the Berbers, or only of a single tribe, that of the Auraghen or Aurigha, are questions that cannot now be solved. In any case Africa, already so named by Ennius before the second Punic war, was for the Romans at first nothing more than the Libyan neighbour of Italy, the .Tunisian Tell still called Friga, a name which became gradually extended to the whole continent, just as the Asia of the Cayster Yalley ultimately embraced India, Siberia, and China. As now surveyed around its entire seaboard, Africa stands out as the best- defined division of the Old World — a vast island, attached only by a narrow isthmus, 1 — AF. Tfi I'" ¥1 T- ■HMi ffp» I i NOBTK-EAST APBIOA. _ 90 miles broad, to the Asiatic mainland. Even this isthmus itself is an old marine and fluvial basin — Mediterranean alluvium in the north, a deposit of the Red Sea in the south ; between these two marine zones an ancient Nilotic delta, which, to judge from the allied faimas, probably at one time communicated with the Jordan. But although the Isthmus of Suez had no existence in Tertiary times, there were other stretches of land connecting Egypt with Cyprus and Syria ; for nowhere else in the periphery of the globe are there found contiguous marine inlets presenting imoh differences in their fauna as do those of Suez and Gaza. But if the waters of the Indian Ocean have remained completely distinct from those of the Mediterranean since the Eocene epoch, with the exception perhaps of a shallow channel flooded in Quaternary times, the intervening barrier has /it last been removed by the hand of man. Thanks to his industry, the two seas hence- forth mingle their waters in the inland basin of Lake Timsah, and the circumnavi- gation of Africa is open to the largest vessels afloat. Compared with this southern continent, whost^ contour is so clearly defined, the two other divisions of the Old World seem to merge in one continental mass. Certainly the depression skirting the Ural range from the Gulf of Ob to the Caspian, and the Manich isthmus between the Caspian and Euxine, cannot be regarded as such sharp geographical parting lines as the marine channel now flowing between Suez and Port Said. But however clearly severed at present from the rest of the Eastern hemisphere, Africa is not so entirely distinct from Europe and Asia as might at first sight be supposed. Farts of its seaboard were even formerly connected directly with the regions beyond the Mediterranean, and there was a time when the Atlas Mountains effected a jimotion ?eross the {>reseflt Strait of Gibraltar with the parallel Sierra Nevada range. Even dcwn to the close of the Pliocene epoch, Tunisia was still united with Sicily and Italy through a broad zone, of which the only surviving fragments are the little Maltese group of islets. Greece also merged southwards in boundless plains watered by streams whose banks were frequented by the elephant and hippopotamus.* Although now detached from Spain and Italy, North-west Africa is still in its geology, natural : istory, and climate essentially a Mediterranean land, forming with the opposite European seaboard a distinct physical region. Along both coasts the same fossils occur on the old rocks, while similar floras and faunas are now in possession of the soil. The Mauritanian coastlands differ far more from Nigretia, from which they are separated by the Sahara, than they do from Provence, and as already remarked by Sallust, North Africa is physically a part of Europe. East- wards also the Ethiopian shore of the Red Sea belongs to the same formations as the opposite coast of Arabia, and a general resemblance oharacteriees the climate, natural productions, and inhabitants on either side of Bab-el- Mandeb. In its massive outlines Africa presents the same monotonous appearance as the two other southern divisions of the globe — South America and Australia. It is even less indented than the corresponding section of the New "World ; nor is it supple- mented, like Australia, by a vast region of archipelagoes and islands, scattered over * Bamsay ; Zittal ; Neumayr. smr. L-L^--i-«,'«_^n MOUNTAINS. 8 old marine Red Sea in ih, to judge rdan. But were other ) else in the mting imch stinct from terhaps of a has (it last seas hence- jircumnavi- lis southern of the Old ion skirting aus between ical parting liemisphere, rst sight be ;ly with the ) Mountains ■allel Sierra sia was still y surviving athwards in he elephant ) still in its arming with 1 coasts the are now in m Nigretia, snce, and as ■ope. East- Eitions as the the climate, ■ance as the It is even is it supple- attered over the northern and eastern seas. Its very size, estimated at nearly 12,000,000 square miles, or over three times that of Europe and four times that of Australia, contributes to its heavy uniform aspect. Notwithstanding its greater bulk, its coastline is considerably less than that of Europe. Exclusive of a thousand smaller inlets, such as the Scandinavian fjords and the firths of Scotland, the latter has a periphery of about 19,000 miles, the former not more than 15,000, much of which is unbroken by a single creek or bay. Its general form is that of an ellipsoid, disposed in the direction from north to south, and bidging out westwards in a still less varied semi-elliptical mass between Cape Bon and the Qulf of Guinea. The prevailing uniformity is modified on the east side chiefly by the sharp peninsula terminating at Cape Gardafui, on the west by the retreating curve of the coastline, by which the Atlantic basin is suddenly doubled in width. The eastern projection, which is separated by the GuU of Aden from Hadramaut, follows the direction of the south-eastern extremity uf Arabia, a region which in its climate and other respects forms a land of transition between the two continents. Mountains. ♦ From its regular contour, Africa might seem to be built on a generally uniform and simple plan. But such is not the case. Europe, notwithstanding its countless indentations, may be compared to an organism furnished with a backbone and members ; Asia also groups its boundless plains and peninsulas around a culminat- ing nucleus, the Great Pamir, or " Roof of the World ; " while both Americas have their western Cordilleras, and in the east vast alluvial plains and river basins separated one from the other by scarcely perceptible parting lines. But Africa is comporatively speaking an almost shapeless mass, with a rudimentar}' organisation destitute alike of central uplands and regidar watersheds. Nevertheless the eastern coast ranges, running parallel with the Indian Ocean, may in some respects be regarded as forming, if not a backbone, at least the border chain of one great con- tineutiil highland system. Spite of the broad gaps pierced by the Limpopo, Zambezi, and Juba rivers, the broken fragments of a vast Cordillera may be recog- nised in the uplands stretching interruptedly from the Cape northwards to the Abyssinian highlands. In this zone of border ranges occur the culminating points of the continent, the extinct Kilima-njaro and Kenia volcanoes, perhaps the summits known to the ancients as the " Mountains of the Moon." West of these peaks the plateau is intersected by a parallf)l chain of other volcanoes, some of which are said still to emit smoke ; while beyond Victoria Nyanza a third range, dominated by Mfumbiro and Gambaragara, woidd seem to form a western border system or water-partiag between the Upper Nile and Congo basins. Here the plateau expands to a breadth of 550 miles, terminating northwards in the Abys- sinian highlands, a rocky citadel whose base exceeds those of all the other continen- tal orographic systems. These Ethiopian heights stand over against those of Yemen, and like them are a remnant of the border range sweeping roimd the Indian and U«*MMiWii« I M'JWt ' » ing a vast known at 8 indented trough the --:>,'.^jVr EIVEBS. | tableland, intersected by mountain ranges resting on foundations of from 3,000 to 4,500 feet. The Congo and Nile basins confine on the north and west this region of plateaux, which comprises about a third of the whole continent. On the other sides the border ranges are considerably less elevated and much more divided than those of South and East Africa. They are nowhere continuous, but rise in scattered fragments between the Congo and Niger, between the Nile and Lake Tsad, in the heart of the Sahara, which is broken by the two isolated masses of Tibesti and Ahaggar, in the extreme west, where the scarps of the plateaux run parallel with the coasts of Upper Guinea and Senegambia ; lastly in Mauritania, where the Atlas range constitutes a distinct orographic system, formerly connected with those of South Europe. South Fig. 2. — HTDaOOKAPHT OF ApEICA AOOORDOia TO MiDUKTAL GbuOHAPUBBB. .^ of this system the continent may be roughly .described as a vast plane inclined in a north-westerly direction. lia, although comparable d horizontal ' 2,200, feet he Red Sea it continuous Rivers. The rudimentary character of its general relief is also reflected in its hydrographio system. The African rivers, still to a g^eat part entangled in the intricacies of the plateau, have a somewhat irregular and imfinished course, often forcing their way through narrow rocky gorges, and obstructed by numerous falls and rapids. Even the more copious streams are relatively less accessible to navigation than those of the other continents. In this respect the contrast is specially striking between Africa and South America, the two divisions of the globe which are more frequently compared with each other. The "Dark Continent" is entirely destitute of the great estuaries and broad arteries giving access in the New World from the Atlantic seaboard almost to the foot of the Andes. The comparative absence of navigable waters, of islands and good harbours, combined with the great extent of desert wastes, has mainly contributed to exclude Africa from the general life of the com- itaercial world. AU the great rivers — Nile, Congo, and Niger — are inteiTupted by cataracts and ti iimj.iiM^i w i « NOETH-EAST AFEIOA. rapids, which cut o£E from outward intercourse populous regions whose fluvial systems ramify over many hundred millions of acres. The Nile and Congo rising amid the higher plateaux, where the slope is still undecided, traverse in their upper courses many great lakes, which according to a vague tradition once constituted a single lacustrine basin of enormous extent. In the sixteenth century the Portuguese explorers had some idea of this hydrographic system. But in tracing the outlines of the great equatorial lakes they seem to have rather copied older maps than relied on positive information. But, however this be, they appear to have believed in the existence of a single source for the Nile, Congo, and even the Zambesi. But the streams were also supposed to traverse extensive underground regions, and an Italian map engraved in the middle of the fifteenth century represents a Nile with three heads, separated by a vast space from the emissaries of the chief fountain. This Nile is moreover made to flow in the direction from north to south, a small Egyptian delta corresponding to a much larger delta in South Africa. The first modern explorers of the same region were also influenced by these traditional ideas. Even Speke traced the course of four rivers issuing from various parts of Lake Nj'anza to form the Nile, while Stanley made Tanganyka the source of two effluents, one flowing northwards to the Nile, the other westwards to the Congo. But although these great arteries do not rise in a common source, the water-parting between them is in some places so low and undecided that a slight disturbance of the surface would suffice to change the direction of many affluents. It is even possible that on the dividing line of some basins there may exist lakes or swamps draining in both directions. The unfinished aspect of the central rivers, the cataracts interrupting their course, the lacustrine reservoirs scattered over the plateaux, produce a certain resem- blance between equatorial Africa and the Scandinavian peninsula. But in the northern region, still under ice within a comparatively recent geological epoch, the rivers have scarcely commenced their work of erosion. The climatic conditions are of course entirely different, and although the existence of an old glacial period may be suspected even in the torrid zone, the long ages that have elapsed since that remote epoch must have effaced nearly all trace of glaciers and moraines. Hence the rudimentary character of these fluvial basins is probably due to a different cause. The climate, which was formerly much more humid in the Sahara, may possibly have been correspondingly drier in the south-eastern region of the Nyanza plateau. In the absence of a copious rainfall the rocks would remain uneroded, and the now flooded cavities unfilled by the alluvia of running waters. - During its long geolo- gical life the earth has witnessed many shif tings of the climatic zones. If the rains are more abundant in some places than formerly, in others they are more rare, and the Igharghar basin, for instance, in North-west Africa, belongs to one of these dried-up regions. East of the Nile and of the great lakes there is no space between the plateaux and the coast for the development of large streams. From the Egyptian uplands the Red Sea receives nothing but intermittent wadies, and along a seaboard of about 2,400 miles southwards to Mozambique the Indian Ocean is fed only by such ■ » < fefe«Bai)ai; j Si ; g^^4agifeii:^ -.•■-.^•i tiI WWWH«l ose fluvial mgo rising ;heir upper nstituted a Portuguese be outlines than relied 9ved in the But the ns. and an I Nile with t fountain, th, a small d by these rem various the source irds to the source, the at a slight y affluents, ist lakes or pting their tain resem- 3ut in the epoch, the iditions are period may since that es. Hence Brent cause, ay possibly iza plateau, ad the now long geolo- [f the rains "e rare, and le of these le plateaux an uplands rd of about y by such g o a n § a I A J: .'. ''v'' EIVERS. 7 sluggisli rivers as the Juba, Tana, Lufiji, and Rovuma. But south of the great central lacustrine plateaux the Zambezi, whose furthest headsfcreams rise near the west coast, drains a vast tract of country estimated at about 760,000 square miles, or nearly three times the size of France. In volume it ranks third amongst African rivers, but in length fourth only. Still farther south the Limpopo has also a con- siderable discharge ; whereas the Orange, whose basin exceeds 400,000 square miles in extent, contributes to the South Atlantic very little of the rainfall collected in Fig. 8.— Outflow of Lakb Ntakea, accobpixo to Sfbkb. SoOe 1 : 1^000,000. 180 UHm the gorges of its upper course. The Kunene and Eoanza, which follow from south to north, although more copious, have stiU but a slight volume compared with their respective areas of drainage. The same may be said of the Ogowe, which rises in the peninsular tract formed by the great bend of the Congo east of equatorial Guinea. The Niger, or " Nile of the Blacks," forms with the Nile, Congo, and Zambezi, one of the four great arteries of Africa. Even down to the beginning of this cen- tury many geographers still supposed that the Nile and the Niger mingled their 8 NOETH-EAST AFRICA. waters across the continent. Some old maps represent the latter as rising in tho same lake as the eastern Nile, whereas its main source lies, not in the centre of Africa, but at Mount Loma, on the slope of the Rokelle Mountains, in the vicinity of the west coast. A space of at least 2,700 miles thus intervenes between the farthest headstreams of both rivers, while the nearest affluents are still separated by a dis- tance of some 720 miles. The Niger in fact belongs to a region wholly different from that of the Nile in the form and disposition of its plateaux. On the other side of the hills where it takes its rise, the Congo, Rio Grande, Gambia, and several other streams flow to independent estuaries on the west coast, while farther north the Senegal, rising on the same slope as the Niger, sweeps roimd the hills, forcing its way to the Atlantic through a series of rocky gorges and rapids. North of the Senegal no large river reaches the coast, and for a space of 4,800 miles from the bar of Saint Louis to the Nile delta nothing is met except a few wadies or small streams, such as the Draa, in the south of Morocco, the Moluya, Shelif, Mejerda, flowing to the Mediterranean. The Congo alone probably discharges as much water as all the other African rivers together. Next to it rank the Niger and Zambezi, the Nile in this respect taking only the fourth place. Of the inland basins either constantly or intermittently closed, the most impor- tant are Lakes Tsad in the north, and Makarakara-Ngami in the south, both lying at nearly equal distance from the middle Congo, and thus presenting a symmetrical disposition on either side of the equator. Tsad, much the largest of the two, is also situated in the northern or largest section of the continent, the extent of both thus corresponding with that of the surrounding regions draining to the oceans. But here all further analogy ceases, at least if it be true that Tsad has always been a closed basin : for the Ngami reservoirs certainly communicated at some former geological epoch with the Limpopo and Zambezi. Besides these central depressions, each section of the continent has its deserts, strewn with secondary basins and oases, whose waters lose themselves in the sur- rounding sands. Altogether the area of inland drainage is estimated by Chavanne at nearly 3,000,000 square miles, of which 660,000, or less than a fifth, lie south of the equator.* Amongst the northern tracts without any outflow there are some depressions which at present lie below sea-level. These are probably the remains of straits and inlets formerly belonging to the Mediterranean and Red Sea. The largest are those which seem to form a continuation of the Tunisian Gulf of Cabes (Syrtis Minor), south of Algeria, which formerly received the discharge of the now dried up Igharghar, a river 780 miles long, and consequently longer than the * Closed hydrogrsphic basins of the African continent :— NoKTH Africa. 8q. MilM. Basin of the Tsad, including the Fed6 - . 730,000 „ „ Igharghar 330,000 Other battins and waterless spaces 1,346,000 South Africa. Basin of Lakb Ngami 314,000 Other basins and waterless spnces 257.000 >*^'^'^\*i^^)i■i^t^i■^^^-':■'J^■^y," ' ISLANDS. Limpopo. Other cavities below sea- level follow in succession between the Great Syrtis and the Nile south of the plateau of Cyrenaica. At the foot of the Abys- sinian highlands on the Red Sea coast are also found deep troughs, the surface waters of which have sunk to a level far below that of the neighbouring inlets. In the southern section of the continent such maritime depressions do not occur. Islands. Africa is as poorly furnished with a complement of islands as it is with large inlets and orographic systems. In their submarine relief those in the Mediterranean belong rather to Europe than to this continent. Crete is connected with Asia Minor and with Greece ; Sicily, Corsica, and Sardinia with Italy ; the Balearic group by .i submarine bank with the coast of Yalentia ; Jerba alone and a few islets in the Gidf of Cabes and along the Mauritanian shores form parts of the northern seaboard. On the Atlantic side little occurs beyond some rocks and low-lying banks, such as the Bissagos or Bishlas Archipelago, which a slight alluvial deposit or up- heaval of the land would suffice to connect with the continent. The more distant groups of Madeira and Porto Santo, the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands, are of volcanic origin, and separated from the mainland by abysses over 3,000 feet in depth. Of igneous formation are also the islets in the Gulf of Guinea, Annabom, Saint Thomas, Prince, Fernando- Po, which form a chain of volcanoes all more recent than the neighbouring mainland. The small groups in the Red Sea are mere coral reefs dominated here and there by a few volcanic peaks. Even in the Indian Ocean the only real African island is Socotra, the " spear-head " of the peninsula at present terminating at Cape Garda- fui, and farther south Pemba, Zanzibar, and Mafia, disposed parallel with the coast. The Comoro Group is of volcanic origin, and Madagascar too far removed from Mozambique to be regarded as a dependency of the continent. Its nearest headland is 180 miles distant, and even this space is doubled for ordinary craft by the velocity of the intervening marine currents. Its flora and fauna also show that this great island belongs to a distinct geological domain. Geoffroy de Saint-Hilaire looked on it as a world apart, and most subsequent zoologists have regarded it as a fragment of " Lemuria," a vanished continent, which also embraced the granite groups of the Seychelles and Rodriguez as well as Ceylon and the Maldives, and may have even reached as far as Celebes in the "Eastern Archipelago. Climatb. Above all the great divisions of the globe, Africa is distinguished by the general regularity of its climatic phenomena, a circumstance due to its massive form and to its equatorial position. In the region approaching nearest to the northern or southern lines of the equinoxes, rain falls throughout the year, thanks to the opposing trade winds, which by neutralising each other often preserve the stillness / inm, i pni,jjiii. i ^. 9^ 10 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. of the atmosphere, and enable the local vapours to condense and precipitate them- aolvca on the spot. In the northern hemisphere a zone of two wet seasons stretches from the equator to the fifteenth degree of latitude. In summer, copious rains are caused by the moisture-bearing south-west winds ; in winter, those blowing from the north-west become in their turn the bearers of heavy rain-charged clouds to the southern hemisphere. But on both sides of the torrid zone, which comprises about seven-tenths of the whole continent, the difterence in the disposition of the winds Fig. 4. — IlOTHBHHAL LlNKR OP AfBIOA. Seal* 1 : Tn.ono,oou. 1,900 nam. causes a corresponding contrast in the rainfall. Here the trade winds maintain their normal direction constantly, or with but slight temporary deviations ; blowing from the north-east in the northern, from the south-east in the southern hemisphere, they divert to the equator most of the vapours crossing their path, leaving else- where clear skies and arid lands. Thus it happens that Africa has two almost com- pletely barren zones of rocks, gravels, marls, clay and sand — the Sahara and Libyan desert in the north, Kalahari and other wastes in the south. This ^-.- ^M tate them- 8 stretches 8 rains are ring from )Uc1h to the rises about the winds ■^^ 3 maintain s ; blowing emisphere, iving else- Imost com- iahara and ith. This OlilMATE. 11 symmetrical disposition of the climates is completed by the regular alternation of winds and ruins in the zones of Mauritania and the Cape of Oood Hope, both belonging to the region of sub-tropical rains, which fall in the respective winters of each hemisphere. Africa is thus disposed from north to south in successive grey and more or less intensely green belts, presenting to the iububitunts of the other Fig. 6.— DiBTRinuTioN of thb Rainvall in Africa. Scale 1 : T,ji00,0ua El Under 4 loobes. 4to!U nohee. 90 to 40 Inohei. 40toeO Inohee. 60 to 80 Inobea. M^Mdieaaad upward*. LSOOUilM. planets an aspect perhaps analogous to that offered to our gaze by the parallel cloudy zones round about Jupiter. These different zones of moisture, whose limits coincide in several places with the isothermal lines, are developed across the continent with sufficient regularity to enable M. Chayanne to map them out. Africa is more sharply distributed in distinct regions by its deserts than it could have been by broad arms of the sea, •^mm''''9f' 12 NORTII-KAflT AFBIOA. and the Jintribution of itH inhabituntn han almi Imhmi dotomiinod almont cxclunively by tho climatio conditiona, doponding ovorywhoro on the ubuudunce of ruin and vegetation. , i Flora and Fauna. In itH florii und fuunu, aa well as its climuto and geology, North Africa belongs to the zone of trunHition between Europe and Asia. The apparent unity imparted to the continent by its compact form is not realised when we examine in detail the phenomena of life. Cyrenaica and the whole Mauritauian seaboard on the slope of tho Atlas range belong to the vegetable domain of the Mediterranean, in which are also comprised Spain, Provence, Italy, the Balkan peninsula, the shores of Asia Minor, and Syria. The zone of the Sahara, which stretches under the Tropic of Cancer aorofi the continent, is continued in Arabia to the Persian Gulf, and even through some of their rarer species embraces the Baluchistan coast, Thar, the Ilann, and the Eathyawar peninsula in India. Lastly, the floras of Yemen and Iladraraaut resemble those of Sudan, the narrow Red Sea having been easily traversed by African species. For the whole continent, the characteristic vegetable zone is that of Sudan and the equatorial regions, which stretches from sea to sea, and from desert to desert, between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, between the Sahara and Kalahari. Speaking broadly, it is much poorer in distinct species than the other tropical regions, such as India and the Sunda Islands, and even than some sub-tropical lands, such as Asia Minor. Nevertheless certain central districts in Africa possess a remarkable variety of plants, as for instance, the territory watered by the Di(\r, not far from the dividing line between the Nile and Congo basins. Here Schweinfurth collected in five months nearly seven hundred flowering species, which it would be impossible to do in the richest European lands. Most of the African tropical domain is exposed to the periodical rains, with long intervening periods of dryness. Hence arborescent vegetation nowhere displays greater exuberance and vigour than on the plains between the Cong^ and Nile, where the streams often disappear amid dense masses of foliage, and in the neighbourhood of the Bight of Benin, which enjoys far more humidity than the interior. A larg^ extent of the zone of the Sudan is occupied by prairies, although some tracts are so overgrown with gpraminaceous and other herbs that animals refuse to penetrate into them. In the Nile marsh lands, certain andropogonous varieties have non-woody stalks over twenty feet high, affording to the giraffe cover from the hunter. The various graminaceous plants of Central Africa are not intermingled like those of the European fields, and tracts several hundred square miles in extent are sometimes occupied by a single species. Thorny plants are relatively very abundant in the forests of the Sudan, and after clearances the trees appear not to spring up so rapidly in this zone as in South America. Varieties of the palm family are ten times more numerous in Asia and America than in Africa, which has consequently a wider range for its prevailing species. The equatorial regions of other continents have scarcely any cocoa-nut I "^V^M** MSM f^ym^at^m^fm ••»»»~" PT.ORA ANT) FATTNA. II icluHJvely ruin uiid a belongs imparted detail the e nlope of in which shoreH of he Tropio Gulf, and Thar, the amen and en easily iudan and to desert, Kalahari, r tropical b- tropical in Africa 'ed by the 18. Here species, Ains, with nowhere bngo and nd in the than the although 1; animals >pogonou8 he giraffe ca are not ed square and after in South Asia and )reTailing cocoa-nut forosts oxoopt on flu< W^abar coast, in C'oylon, and around tho r/iirihb<«an noulMmrd, whoruufl in N»»rth Afrvca the dttm palm {^hyplurne thvhnica), uiid tho dolob {^fiorantut fiabell{fonnin), uh w»^U b« the dufr (p/i'fuu- dort;fl\tera) cover oxtenHivo tructn in the 00U08 of tho northern Sahiira. C'omparod with tho number of its spocioH, tho Nigrotiun flora pus«( uses many '('•"•s with un abnoi;mul dovolopmont of stom, louf, and fruits. The buooali in noted for (ii§ enonnous sixo of its trunk, while the kiyr/ia unci some other bigitoniuuou) have fruits (^^'o feet long, and tho eiinele, a variety of the niusaceuo, displays the largent foliage iu the entire vegetable kingdom. The Kalahari flora, south of the tropical domain, resembles that of the Sahara,, except that it forms no oases, nor are the few watered tracts anywhere shaded by palms. This flora is distinguished by its thorny acacias and mimosas, and, like that of Northern Nigretia, it abounds in g^minaoeous species. On its northern margin some almost rainless districts grow the teelicitachia, a remarkable plant, so flush with the ground as often to escape the notice of travellers. Burrowing downwards in the form of a reversed cone, it displays above ground nothing but a rough surface over a yard long, throwing off right and left two cotyledons of a leathery appearance, and occasionally exceeding 16 feet in length after a growth of one hundred years. On the east coast of Africa, the transition between the vegetable zones is more gradual than on the opposite side, where the tropical domain is abruptly limited by the Kalahari desert. Along the Indian Ocean the change takes place imper< ceptibly from north to south through the Limpopo basin and Natal. On this seaboard, which is skirted by the warm Mozambique stream, the southern limit of the palm lies 16 degrees lower down than on the Atlantic coast. But on the whole the vegetation south of the Orango River is clearly distinguished from that of the rest of the continent. Although the rainfall is limited and the geological formations far from varied, tho Cape flora, consisting chiefly of grasses, shrubs, and bushes, is altogether unique for the multitude uf its intermingled species. In this respect it is unrivalled even by the richest European countries. Nowhere else do the mountain slopes present more vegetable forms disposed in belts sharply separated from each other by the several zones of altitude. It may be asked whether this Cape flora is not a survival from far more extensive lands engulfed in the sea, most of whose vegetation has found a refuge in the relatively limited tract bounded northwards by the basin of the Orange River. In the same way the island of Madagascar appears to have preserved a great part of the flora of the vanished " Lemurian " continent. It still possesses over forty vegetable families peculiar to itself. The appearance of Europeans and Semites has been accompanied by the introduction of many new species, which in several districts have displaced and even exterminated the indigenous forms. Elsewhere the range of certain plants appears to have been modified even without the intervention of man. Thus the papyrus, which three thousand years ago was characteristic of the Egyptian Nile, is now, according to Sohweinfurth, found only on the Upper Nile near the equator. t I I ■■r— ^|>. T i-ww f B| r wj|py tty . wy ii| j i i |j. ii u i HJl ' ..WW/i' ' ■ ' *- ' < ' """^(^ u NORTU-EAST AFEICA. The pink lotus also {nehimbiiim specioHum^, whose flower symbolised the fertilising stream, the sun, and the sun-god, no longer flourishes on the Egyptian waters. On the mummies of the tombs in Upper Egypt are found floral wreaths containing Fig. 6. — Veoetablk Z0NB8 OF Afuioa. Scale 1 : 7^0OO,O0O. Mediterranean. Hasauderan. Steppes. BavaimaR. Tropical Foreat traots within the aavannaa ID IZH Cape. Madagaaoar. Abyssinian Plateaux. Deeert. , 1,200 Miles. Oasis. V numerous species, such as the eentaurea depressa, which have aince disappeared from the local flora, or at least no longer grow spontaneously. The zones of the African fauna are less clearly defined than those of the vegetable kingdom. Migrating more easily than the plants, the animals have crossed many frontiers within which the plants have been confined by the climatic conditions. Hence the same animal types prevail throughout Nigretia and the FLOBA AND FAUNA. 18 fertilising in waters, containing ithin lisappeared ose of the imals have he climatic :;ia and the region north of Cape Colony. Numerous species of mammals and birds are met from the southern extremity of the continent to the banks of the Senegal ; nor are the plateaiix and highlands anywhere lofty enough to prevent the migrations of animals, which in Africa are kept apart rather by the broad desert wastes than by moimtain barriers. The Mascarenhas, and especially Madagascar, are centres of independent life, the latter containing over one hundred animal species not found elsewhere. But the immigrations of Arabs and Europeans have added several species to the African fauna, in exchange for those they have contributed to extirpate. The camel, without which it seems impossible for caravans to cross the Sahara in its present arid state, is nevertheless a comparatively recent arrival, its image occurring nowhere either on the old Egyptian monuments or on the " inscribed stones " of the ancient Berbers. Hence it is evident that the Sahara was not always a desert ; and valuable inscriptions, confirming the text of Herodotus, prove that the ox and the zebu were the first pack animals of the Garamantes on the route between Fezzon and Sudan. Now man has been followed by his ordinary companions, such as the horse and dog, at least wherever they have been able to adapt them- selves to the climate. When the American Chaill^-Long appeared on horseback at the court of the King of Uganda, north of the Victoria Nyanza, the natives fancied, like the Mexicans at the first appearance of the Spanish cavalry, that horse and man formed one animal, and when the stranger dinmounted they ran off terror-stricken at the sight of this centaur dividing itself into two distinct beings. The greatest obstacle to the development of Africa is caused by the tsetse i^ghssina moraitans), a simple fly, whose bite is fatal to horses, camels, oxen, and dogs although harmless to man, the calf, goat, and wild beasts. This destructive insect, which is supposed, rightly or wrongly, to infuse anthrax virus into its victims, is very common in certain districts of South and Central Africa, but does not extend farther north than the Bahr-el-Ghazal and Senaar, and is unknown in the north-west. The donderobo, another two-winged pest observed to the south of the Eilima Njaro, spares cattle, but attacks the ass, goat, and sheep. Africa is the home of the largest living quadrupeds, such as the elephant, various species of the rhinoceros, the hippopotamus, giraffe, and other herbiferous animals. At the same time the African elephant is smaller, less vigorous, and more difficult to tame than its Indian congener, from which it differs in its convex frontal bone, large ears, and some other physical characteristics. The attempts made by Gordon to domesticate this animal and employ it in warfare were not successful, and in this respect Europeans have still to discover the secrets known not only to the Hindus, but even to the ancients, and, according to Duveyrier, to the tribes south of Mauritania, and to the Wakorays of the western Sahara. The lion of the Atlas highlands is fiercer than the Babylonian species; the gorilla is the strongest and most formidable of the ape family; of all hoofed animals the zebra is the most indomitable ; neither the American caiman nor the Indian gavial approach the dimensions of the African crocodile, and of all -TSSPTSSaSS "fmm .*fc^. 16 NORTH-EAST AFBICA. running birda the African ostrich is the most powerful. This continent excels not only in the number and size of its animal species, but also in the multitude of individuals. Thus on the central plateaux travellers have observed vast plains covered by countless herds of ruminants, and Livingstone tells us that he had to force his way through the dense troops of antelopes. But since then wide gaps have already been made amongst these teeming multitudes by destructive hunting expeditions in the Nile basin and in the southern plains. It is calculated that the 15,600 cwts. of ivory yearly imported into Europe cost the lives of 60,000 elephants. Whole species are threatening to disappear, as the small Mauritanian elephant and certain animal forms in the Mascarenhas Islands have already vanished. The range of the rhinoceros formerly comprised south-west Morocco, where it has not been seen in historic times. ■-■- ■'- ■''"^''- ■■'■■' '--■^ '-*■ Inhabitants. During the first half of the present century European geographers, still unacquainted with the interior, were naturally inclined to exaggerate the extent of the desert regions, and readily regarded as solitudes all spaces left blank on the maps. The continent was supposed to contain some fifty or sixty, or at the utmost a hundred, million inhabitants. Since that time more accurate statistics have been taken in some of the European colonies or possessions on the coast ; rough estimates have also approximately determined the population of some districts near the maritime ports, and travellers, yearly increasing in numbers, have brought from the interior at least sufficient data to enable us to classify the inland regions according to the greater or less density of their populations. In some of these districts the people aro as closely packed as in Belgium, while elsewhere village succeeds village for several leagues together. The basins of Lake Tsad and the Joliba (Niger), as well as most of Nigritia south of the Sahara, are thickly peopled, as are also the region of the great lakes, the Nile delta, the White Nile in the Shilluk territory, and the lands watered by the Congo and its chief affluents. The population of the whole continent cannot be estimated at less than two hundred millions, or seven times more than the calculations of Pinkerton and Volney nearly a century ago. More recently Balbi fixed the number at sixty millions, which was long accepted as the most probable. The hypothetical element in all these rough estimates will doubtless be gradually diminished by the systematic work of modern explorers.* To Africa the expression " Dark Continent " is frequently applied, as if all its inhabitants were Negroes properly so called, analogous, in type to the maritime populations in the west equatorial region. The term Beled-es-Sudan, or " Black Land," would thus be extended to the whole continent. But the true Negroes, although perhaps forming a majority of the inhabitants, occupy less than half of the land. The regions to the north, east, and south belong to tribes and peoples of diverse physical appearance, and grouped in distinct races or sub-races. Some • Approximate estimate of the population of Africa by Behm and Wagner in 1882, 206,825,000. excels not Liltitude of ast plains he had to wide gaps e hunting d that the of 60,000 auritanian e already I Morocco, ihers, still ;he extent ink on the or at the ) statistics the coast ; I of some . numhers, ilassify the itions. In um, while basins of he Sahara, ) delta, the go and its ited at less Finkerton ler at sixty »il element 5d by the aa if all its 3 maritime or " Black e Negroes, lan half of nd peoples ces. Some ,825,000. •#:■ T-- "^.Xi^slfcfet-n.,-. _, , '''iWf'lWWi ifH;. ,1^..; ...„,T".".," r ',^.;», ™»ppp«r ai i ij i j ii i i njiinij.il .. 1 .11 . iii i.i|!w i n i i.i I 't- V^ 9S^^wf?^mm*' INHABITANTS. 17 ethnologists have supposed that all the " Children of Ham," from the Berbers to the Hottentots, are descended from one original stock, and that their diverging types are due to gradual adaptation to different environments. But such a hypothesis is unsupported by any proof, and the observer is struck especially by the ethnical contrasts, whether fundamental or derived, which are presented by the various African populations, as he advances from north to south. Even within the strictly Megro division the anatomy, muscular system, physiognomy, colour, and speech offer as great a diversity of forms as is found amongst the white peoples of Europe or the yellow Asiatics. At the same time the classifications hitherto proposed by anthropologists, and based on physical resemblances or linguistic affinities, are of a purely conventional or provisional character. Numer- ous communities, of which little is known beyond their name, are grouped now in one, now in another division. We seem at times to be lost in the maze of names of tribes and races collected by travellers in the various regions of Africa, and the chaos is often intensified by the reckless use of these names, the same term being applied in one place to two distinct peoples, while in another the same group is indicated on the maps by several different appellations. The Mediterranean seaboard differs from the rest of the continent as much in its inhabitants as it does in its geological history, its physical features, its animal and vegetable species. The bulk of the Mauritanian popidation consists of the so-called Berbers (Imazighen, Imohagh), who approach the European type more closely than the other African races. Amongst them are met several tribes in which blue eyes and fair or light chestnut hair are so common that they have often been wrongly regarded as of European descent. These Berber peoples seem to be allied to the ancient Egyptians. The whole of North Africa and Southern Europe may have even been peopled from one ethnical source in prehistoric times, the populations, like the animal and vegetable species, thus radiating from a common centre. The oases and upland valleys in the Sahara have also been oncupied by the Berbers, some of whose tribes, designated by the name of " Moors," dwell even south of the desert along the right bank of the Senegal. Some of the Berber communities, such as the Imohaghs or Tuaregs of Ahaggar, and the Imazighen or Kabyles, that is, " Tribes," and especially those of Morocco, appear to be of pure stock. But in the plains, and still more in the towns, endless crossings have modified the type in a thousand ways, and given rise to half-caste populations bearin to Hay, taken no part in the general work of civiliwition. The HrHt example which preaontii itself to the mind is that of the king of Dahomey, celebrating the " great custom " by a general masHacre and the Hooding of a lake with human blood; or else we conjure up tho image of thoHO armed Monbuttu hordes which rush to battle grinding their teeth ond shouting " Moat ! Meat ! " But these frightful pictures are not an epitome of tho history of Africa. On tho contrary, we are irresistibly attracted by the study of our own social evolution to tho Nile basin in North- East Africa. Looking bock through the long perspective of tho past, far beyond the heroic times of Oroece, where was crudled our distinctly European culture, we ascend from century to century to the remote ages when the Pyramids were raise;<•,. From the remotest antiquity the Africans, even beyond Egypt, took part in the triumphs of mankind over nature. They were either stockbreeders or tillers of the land, and to them we are indebted for many valuable plants and domestic animals. From the African continent comes the variety of sorgho which, under the name of durra, is cultivated from the banks of the Nile to the shores of the southern ocean, and which is rivalled only by wheat and rice in its economic importance to mankind. From Africa we have also received the date, for the Berbers and Sudanese were probably the first to study the habit of this palm, which g^rew spontaneously in their forests. According to Schweinfurth, the wild stock of the Ethiopian banana, known to botanistn by the name of mma ensete, gave rise to the hundred varieties of the cidtivated banana, whose fruit serves as a staple of food in many American lands. To these three important vegetable species must also be added the kaffa shrub, or co£fee plant, so highly prized by a third of mankind for the stimulating properties and delicious aroma of its berry. The civilised world is also indebted to the natives of Africa for several domestic animals. Certain varieties of the dog, the cat, the pig of Senaar, and the ferret, have been tamed by them ; the ass also is certainly of African origin, and to the same source should perhaps be traced the g^at, the sheep, and the ox. In recent "#Mmif "•iMPiiina mvifmnKf^if''^ INIIAHITANTH. tl ), hail (^ivon Icon no part tflolf to the )y u gonoral juro up the thoir tooth 1 epitome of y the Ktudy M)kin(|r back I of Greece, century to rst plough- id the very laitn to the themsolvos Aivcr bo the »rm8 of our in. It had le arid rock 0U8 stream, intercourse The north ,ny share in ) the Dark ning desert part in the illers of the tic animals, the name of ;hem ocean, portance to lerbers and vhich grew itock of the 9 rise to the e of food in aust also be lankind for ■al domestic [ the ferret, I and to the In recent times tho guinea-fowl was, so to say, rwllHoovcrcd by tho Pc.rtujruoso in this continent, whonco it had boon originally obtuinod by tho U rooks and UonumH, but hod again disupiMJarod during modi«)val times. Evon in the sphere of industries, Africa bos oontributod a certain sharo to tho common iuhoritanco of mankind. Tho monuments of Egypt, her highways, canals. Pig. 7.— Lanovaoim or ArHioA. Boal* 1 1 TNOOOiOOO. :l:■^ lis rrmi Hemite* Berber* (Arab iind (Kabrle*, Abfuinian). Touareg.J Hamites. NnlM. Fula. Niam-Niam. Negritos*. Bantu San »nd Koin-Koln Halayo- Vndawiiled V u,!?" (Hottentota, Polynesiana. languagea. ArTnna. Turka. £ulua). Buabmen). l,a00MUea. embankments, her costly fabrics, gems, and furniture, her carved woods and wrought metals— in a word, the thousand objects found in her burial-grounds— cannot all have been the work of the Retu alone. Amongst the products of the old Egyptian industry are frequently recognised certain forms ako recurring in 22 NORTH-EAST APEICA. Nubia, in Abyssinia, and even in Sudan. The smelting and working of iron, most useful of all metallurgic discoveries, has been attributed to the Negroes as well as to the Chalybes of Asia Minor ; and the Bongos of the White Nile, as well as some other African tiibes, have constructed furnaces of a very ingenious type. Their smelters and forgers are, for the most part, satisfied with rude and primitive implements, in the use of which they, however, display marvellous skill. The Fans of the Ogowe basin produce excellent iron, whose quality is scarcely equalled by Europeans themselves. In most of the native tribes the smiths constitute a special caste, much respected and even dreaded for their reputed knowledge of the magic arts. In Abyssinia and Senaar they are accused of changing themselves at night into hyosnas and other wild beasts, which prowl about the villages and disinter the bodies of the dead. In agriculture and industry the Africans so far co-operated in the development of human culture. But their direct influence in the trade of the world was felt only through Egjrpt and Mauritania along the Mediterranean seaboard. Com- mercial intercourse was doubtless carried on throughout the whole continent, but very slowly, and through a thousand intermediary tribes. The produce of Central Africa reached Europe long after all trace of its source had disappeared. In the same way the riverain populations along the banks of the Niger received their Manchester cottons and hardware from Birmingham without suspecting that their river flowed into the sea, or that there are other great divisions of the globe beyond the Bark Continent. Nevertheless, there can be no doubt that for thousands of years an active trade has been carried on with the interior. Down to a recent epoch caravans were regarded as sacred, passing fearlessly through contending armies and across disturbed regions. The spirit of traffic prevails amongst numerous tribes in Mauritania, the Upper Nile, and Sudan, as amongst the Jews and Armenians elsewhere, and their dealers display all the shrewdness, tenacity, and inexhaustible obsequiousness everywhere characteristic of the mercantile classes. From time immemorial the cowries of the Maldive Islands {cyprcea moneta), gradually replacing other small objects, such as grains of durra and various seeds, have penetrated as a symbol of exchange as far as West Africa. Through the Calcutta, London, or Zanzibar routes, they are still imported to the Bight of Benin, whence they are forwarded to the markets of Lake Tsad.* But the natives now use them chiefly as ornaments. European travellers find that the Turkish piastres and Maria Theresa crowns have already preceded them in most of the unknown regions of the interior. The Bongo tribe was even acquainted with the art of minting, and current coins are also the bits of iron four inches long which are in common use amongst the Ogow^ Fans. But in maritime commerce the Africans scarcely take any part. With the exception of Alexandria, which, thanks to its position on the route between Europe and India is an essentially international point, Carthage was the only continental city that rose to power by its trade. But Carthage was itself a Phoenician colony, founded on a headland projecting into the Mediterranean in the direction of * John E. Hertz, " Proceedings of the Hamburg Geographical Society," 1880-81. f iron, most 88 as well as i^ell as some iype. Their id primitive , The Fans equalled by ute a special )f the magic lyes at night . disinter the development jrld was felt lard. Com- jntinent, but ee of Central red. In the 3ceived their ig that their ^lobe beyond thousands of recent epoch iding armies ^t numerous e Jews and tenacity, and le classes. raa moneta), arious seeds, Through the ;ht of Benin, J natives now rkish piastres the unknown ;h the art of which are in . With the ;ween Europe y continental lician colony, direction of BISHABI aUM-DBA]:.BBS AT KOR08KO. >-81. i ii Nature Hohamroedans. Wonhippen. Monophysitei and Gnoatics. Froteitants. CatboUca. _ l,SOOHilM. lernu. ing emissaries in Algeria, Tripoli, and Senusiya, and sending them from mosque to mosque in order to excite the congregations against the infidel. In Mecca the most zealous pilgrims, that is, those subject to the most frequent fits of religious frenzy, are the Takrur or Takr&rir, a term usually applied collectively to the West African Negroes, but in a more special sense to those of Wadai and Bomu, and to the inhabitants of Metammeh, in the north-west of Abyssinia. Notwithstanding ..,w^ lose of the tphecies — ihdis have L the East re prepar- t 350' 'em. mosque to Mecca the )f religious the "West mu, and to thstanding SLAVERY. M the difficulties of the journey, thousands of these Takrurs undertake the pilgrimage every year. In West Africa the propagators of Islam, although using the language of the Prophet, are not Arabs, but Negroes of various tribes. As traders or artisans, they visit the populations along the banks of the Gambia, and penetrate even as far as Ashanti and Dahomey, on the Gold Coast and Bight of Benin. In East Africa the propaganda is also very active on the shores of the Indian Ocean, although here the Arab or Swahili dealers take no interest in the conversion of their wretched victims. On the contrary, they prefer to keep them pagan, in order to retain the right of persecuting and plundering them. Once converted, even by the mere initial rite of circumcision, the natives, of whatever race and colour, acquire the privilege of common fellowship with the rest of the faithful. Nor is there lack of honest Mohammedans, who zealously labour in the spirit of the precepts of the Koran for the emancipation of their slaves. In the province of Bahr-el-Ghazal Felkin met the son of a slave-dealer, who finding himself by his father's death the owner of several hundred Negroes, immediately liberated all of them. : \ '■■'" ''''■■■■■"■'/ ''' ' ' Slavery. '. But like their Christian rivals, the Arab traders dealt till recently for the most part in human flesh rather than in elephants' tusks, cotton, ground-nuts, or palm oil. Unfortunately for themselves, the Negroes are the most docile and devoted of servants. Anthropologists have remarked on their essentially feminine type as compared with that of the whites. They are generally noted for their soft voice, scant beard, delicate articulation, pink nails, velvety skin, and rounded muscles.* However physically strong, in manners and demeanour they also approach the general type of woman. They are timid and inquisitive, jealous and coquettish, great gossips and scandal-mongers, quick to love, as quick to fall out and make up their quarrels again. Like so many women, they also delight in abject submission, even sacrificing themselves for those who despise and oppress them. Hence from the remotest times the blacks were most highly esteemed as slaves, and of the tributes or presents forwarded to the Asiatic and European sovereigns, those were most acceptable which were accompanied by African captives. In Africa itself almost every community has its slaves, and amongpst many tribes one half of the population is enslaved to the other. Prisoners of war, considered as so much merch&udise, are bartered or sold to the highest bidder, destined either to till the lands of their owner or to increase the nmnber of retainers attached to some powerful chief ; or else, in some districts, to be immolated in honour of the gods or ancestors of some obscure potentate ; or lastlj, as amongst the Monbuttu, to be roasted and served up at the great feasts. Nevertheless, the position ox the slave is not generally one of great hardship. He often himself accepts this lot to escape from starvation in times of distress, and if badly treated by his owner he enjoys the prescriptive right of transferring his services elsewhere. By renouncing his • WinwoodRende; O. d'EichthaL !!'• 26 NOETH-EAST APMCA. I :U personal freedom be enters a new family, and the offspring of the free woman whom he marries are free like their mother. It miist be confessed tbat the condition of the African slave has been aggra- vated mainly through the influence of European civilisation. Even long before the discovery of the Coast of Guinea by the white navigators, and before the founda- tion of European colonies in the New World, slave markets were held in Seville and Lisbon. But when Portugal had taken possession of the seaboard, and the Spaniards, Portuguese, English, French, and Lutch required robust hands to replace the exterminated natives on their remote western plantations, then a large part of Africa was transformed to a vast hunting-g^und for human quarry, and the name of " white " became synonymous with " caimibal," as it still is in the Galla language. All roimd the coast stations sprang up as outports for this new merchandise. The Portuguese forwarded to Brazil the Negroes captured in Angola ; Jamaica, Barbadoes, and Virginia received their supplies from the Cape Coast ; Louisiana and the French Antilles from Senegal and the Slave Coast ; New Amsterdam from Elmina. Every American settlement thus had its corresponding emporium in Guinea. The horrors of the " middle passage " exceeded all descrip- tion. To save space the living freight was packed in the smallest compass on board ship, where large numbers were swept away by typhus, heat, thirst, and suicide. It would be impossible even roughly to estimate the multitude of human beings sacrificed by the slave-trade, through the wars it fomented around the African seaboard, the epidemics it propagated, the revolts and massacres of which it was the consequence. Although the Africans removed to the New World must be reckoned by many millions, the coloured population, consisting almost exclusively of men, increased very slowly on the plantations. In the present century, however, the equilibrium of the sexes has at least been established amongst the exiled race. At present the number of pure or half-caste Negroes in America exceeds twenty-five millions, and amongst them there are still about one million five hundred thousand unemanci- pated. But since the sanguinary civil war waged in the United States for the liberation of the blacks, this ancient form of servitude is finally condemned, and the number of slaves is daily diminishing in its last strongholds, Cuba and Brazil. , • - / •' ' ■ ./■<;", /^ ':>i' ,' ■ :,i • ' In Africa itself, the institution has received a fatal blow by the closing of the maritime outports, and whatever may at times be said to the contrary, very few of the Arab and other craft engaged in the traffic succeed in forcing the blockade along the shores of the Indian Ocean.* Many however still cross the Red Sea, in defiance of the English at Aden, of the French at Obock, and of the Italians at Assab, while tens of thousands continue to fall victims to the Arab and other kidnappers in the interior of the continent. During the heyday of the slave- traders the traffic cost the lives of at least half a million Negroes every year. Compared with that already remote epoch, the present must be regarded as an age • * SlaverR captured and condemned on tiie east coast of Africa, 1876-7, 27 with 438 slavM ; 1877-8, 16 with 60 slaves. EXPLOEATION. 17 woman m aggra- lefore the 1 founda- n Seville , and the hands to sn a large any, and is in the this new )tured in the Cape ftst; New jsponding 1 descrip- mpass on hirst, and jf human 'ound the of which by many increased uilibrium resent the lions, and memanci- jB for the nned, and Zuba and ■■V' ng of the sry few of blockade ed Sea, in Italians at and other ^he slave- -ery year. as an age ; 1877-8,16 of progress. The outports on the coast are no longer crowded with captives, and, as in the New World, the wars stirred up by the dealers in human flesh involve the ultimate ruin of their infamous traffic. Exploration. Henceforth supported by other produce than that of slaves, the commerce of Africa already finds the interior more accessible to its agents, and the continent thus becomes daily more closely connected with the rest of the world. Large numbers of explorers starting from various points round the coast are continually invading new or little -known regions, and amongst them are many brave volunteers ever ready to sacrifice their lives in the sole interest of science and humanity. It is one of the glories of our age to have produced so many heroes, some who have achieved fame, others whose very names are already forgotten, but all alike devoting themselves merely to fill up the blank spaces on the map of the Dark Continent. A " necrological " Map of Africa has been prepared by M. Henri Duveyrier, showing the names of the chief European explorers who, between the years 1800 and 1874, have either been murdered by fanatical Mohammedans or fallen victims to the deadly climate and the hardships undergone in their effort*- to advance g^graphical knowledge. Since then (ae list has been considerably augmented, and the names of Flatters and his associates— of Schuver, Sacconi, Keith Johnston and many others — ^have been enrolled amongst the martyrs of science. ■ , In the history of African discovery, as in that of all other human conquests, progress has not always been continuous. Until recently the work of exploration has rather been carried on interruptedly, and at times even discontinued for long intervals. Between the first voyage of circumnavigation, mentioned by Herodotus as having been accomplished under Pharaoh Necho, and that of Yasco de Gama, there was an interval of twenty-one centuries, during which numerous discoveries already made had been forgotten. The geographers of the fifteenth century were acquainted witb the results of the older explorations only through Ptolemy's inaccurate statements, which were made still mure confusing by the carelessness of copyists and the imagination of commentators. The coasts already known to the Phoenicians had to be rediscovered, for Hanno's voyage to the south of the Senegal Biver, accomplished nineteen hundred years before the Portuguese, had long ceased to be remembered. Even after Gama's " periplus," and the occupation of a large portion of the coast by the Portuguese, our knowledge of the regions already visited was more than once obscured, thanks mainly to the jealousy of rival nations anxious to keep for themselves the secret of their expeditious. At present learned writers are patriotically engaged in vindicating for their respective countries the honour of having been the first to explore many since- forgotten regions. It seems certain that long before the Portuguese, Italian navigators had surveyed most of t{ie north-west seaboard, and even the islands and archipelagoes lying off the coast. A sketch by the Yenetiau Marco Pizzigani, 28 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. dated 1367, and preserved in the library of Parma, lays down the African coast as far as Cape Bojador, in a way generolly in conformity with the results of the most careful modern surveys. The people of .Dieppe on their part claim for their ancestors the glory of having founded a " Little Dieppe " on the Guinea Coast in 1364, and of having in 1402 colonised the Canaries under the orders of Jean de B^thencourt.* The Portuguese also, whose navigators claimed to be the first to Fig. 0.— Chief Ruutm of Explobbu in thb I^TBBIOB of Afbica (1883). 8a*la 1 : 7S,000,000. The oonnes of riven and ontUnee of lake* are not shown on tMi map. Well knnwn oounMes of which aoour II Vitiin-I«na 3,280 „ » 11 Yangtce-Kiang 2,790 „ NORTH-EART AFRICA. should poi-hapH doncond uvor iivo do^roon to tho Houth of tho t>quator and two to tho oast of tho omismiry fntin tho grout lako. Tho winding of its bod lengthens its whole course by over throe-fourths. Ill suporfiuiul urea tho Nile basin is inferior both to tho Amazon and tho Mis- sissippi, and uppurontly about o(|uuI to the Congo.* Kxcopt in its middle (M)urse, botwoon tho Mukraru territory and Abyssinia, tho lateral river vuUoys are of Nlight extent, and owing to tho arid character of most of its basin, it cannot compare in volume to any of tho other groat rivers of tho world. According to recent esti- mates, the Atnito, which falls into tho Carriboan Hea noar tho Isthmus of Panama, has a greater discharge, although its basin is nearly a hundred times smaller than that of tho Nile. Tho general tilt of tho land from tho central plateaux to the shores of the Mediterranean coincides with the Nile Valley. Nevertheless to its main fluvial arteries the whole of this region is exclusively indebtest remark- This rock, (TO basaltic wenty-four I interstices re nothing toons down is afforded . which en- ome of the d vessels of e European >f the skiffs I the water, wo antelope irance of an its, manned {oi are pro- ed together I, they offer hough they mda seldom %, -. • V. ,', X r lji 'l i j ||l » I l4 ll lJ l jiT') i ||T|| jl l# ll >» il L I I|( ii yy jie ltl l || |< i lll"<>>lli, | |jk^ ii i|i li | i i[ ii l|Lja ii iw>l il;i >iiii | i^puj w u po8ed by ssary, the vn. But ing again i fact the it has no !-Long as h a mean ki lagoon, ace below lescribes a irds to its liroughout ips by the 5 perfectly ) measure- es appears curring in )n walls of But this s, forming a space of BUing the lining its ony walls, I a vertical icent falL 9 follow in Idenly the ited over a a cauldron the breeze, he waving , gave ihe 6 English the water ithout any ather than o a lateral lake, and ' > il%H ii ) i ^i| i i »|| »iH i r ii u >i i< i| » 'ill !iii*>«i|Nllf>»iwi|i||i»ii LAKE ALBERT NYANZA. Lake Albfrt Nyanza. 89 The lake discovered by Baker, and by him named the Albert Nyanza, is known to the people on its east bank as the Mwutan-Nzig^, or " Grasshopper Sea." Others call it the " Great Water," although far inferior in extent to the Victoria Nyanza. It stretches south-west and north-east for a distance of about 90 miles, with a mean breadth of over 18 miles. According to Mason's rough survey it has a superficial area of 1,850 square miles, and stands at an altitude of 2,300 feet. From the Victoria to this lower basin the Nile has consequently descended nearly half of the entire elevation of the continent between the plateaux and the Mediterranean. Like the Dead Sea, the Mwutan-Nzig4 seems to fill a fissure in the earth's crust. It is enclosed right and left by steep mountains, whereas at its northern and southern extremities it terminates in gently shoaling bays and low- lying beaches. The high cliffs on the east side, consisting of granite, gneiss, and red porphyry, form a first stage in the ascent towards the U-Nyoro and U-Ganda plateaux. The streams flowing from the swamps on these uplands have not yet completed their work of erosion by furrowing regular channels across the outer scarps of the plateau. Hence, like the Nile at Murchison Falls, they have all still to make their way through cataracts, where the volume of water is less but the fall much greater, being approximately estimated for most of them at about 320 feet. Livingstone and other explorers of Central Africa supposed that Lake Tanganyka belonged to the Nile basin, sending its overflow north-eastwards to the Albert Nyanza. But subsequent investigation has shown that the two lakes have no communication with each other. During their trips round the latter, both Gessi and Mason ascertained that from the south it receives no affluent except a shallow, sluggish stream, almost choked with vegetation. In this marshy district it is covered with a floating or half-submerged forest of ambach (ambaj), a leguminous plant {herminiera elaphrooeylon), 18 or 20 feet high, with star-shaped leaves and golden yellow flowers like those of the broom. Its wood, which resembles cork in appearance, is the lightest known to botanists, so light that a raft strong enough to support eight persons forms the load of a single porter. It g^ws so densely that the native boats are imable to penetr&te the tangled masses of vegetation springing from the muddy bottom of the lake. Beyond this aquatic forest Gessi beheld a vast prairie rolling away between two steep mountains, which formed a southern continuation of the coast ranges. Lake Albert, continually renewed by contributions from the Nile, is everywhere sweet and pure, except in the southern shallows, where the water is turbid and brackish, and in some places on the east side, where it mingles with saline springs, utilised by the people of U-Nyoro. Although no distinct undercurrents have been observed, the navigation is rendered very dangerous by the sudden squalls sweeping round the headlands and down the mountain gorges. When embarking on their frail craft the natives never fail to cast some valued object into the lake as a propitiatory offering to the water-gods. A chief, one of Baker's friends, :-» 40 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. obtaimid from him a quantity of glass trinkets for the purpose of insuring the stranger's safety by employing them in this way. But since those first visits Lake Albert, already temjwrarily annexed to the Khedive's possessions, has been navigated in every direction by two steamers, which to pass the Nile cataracts had to be taken to pieces and put together again above the lost portages. The transport of the Khedive required no less than 4,800 hands, of which 600 were needed to haul the boiler across the swamps, through the woods, and over the hills. The escarpments along the east coast are far more elevated than those on the opposite side. It is sometimes asserted that the Nile traverses Lake Albert without mingling with the surrounding waters. But recent inquiry has shown that such is not the case. According to the varying temperatures, the warmer fluvial current spreads in a thin layer over the surface of the lake, gradually blending with it under the influence of the winds. But when the stream is colder it descends to the lower depths of the lacustrine cavity, where it replaces the lighter fluid. Hence, although the inflow is distant scarcely 12 miles from the outflow, the Somerset Nile becomes lost in the great lake, whose superfluous waters must be regarded as the main feeder of the emissary. The White Nile. This emissary, variously known as the Kir, the Meri, the Bahr-el-Jebel, or " Mountain River," and by other names according to the dialects of the riverain populations, flows normally north and north-east in a tranquil stream winding at a width of from 2,000 to 6,500 feet between its verdant banks. In the middle of the channel the depth varies from 16 to 40 feet, so that throughout the year it is accessible to large vessels for 120 miles below the lake. The shores are fringed with wooded islands and islets, whi?t) large masses of tangled vegetation drift with the current, especially at the beginning of the floods. These floating islands consist of a substratum of decomposed foliage and reeds strong enough to support an upper layer of living vegetation, by whose roots and tendrils the whole mass becomes solidly matted together. During the course of five or six years the flora becomes renewed, the surface growth decomposing in its turn, and causing the aquatic garden to break up and float away in smaller sections with the stream. But it often happens that the vegetable refuse accumulates in sufficiently large quantities to enable these floating islands to strike root here and there in the bed of the stream, and in the Nile basin whole rivers have sometimes been covered with such buoyant masses, firm enough to bear even the weight of caravans. Owing to the rapid development of this rank vegetation, the Nile has frequently been choked in its upper reaches and compelled to cut new channels in the surrounding alluvia. On the plains stretching west of the present Nile traces are seen in many places of these old beds, or " false rivers," as they are called. The low chain of hills skirting this plain on the west, and forming the water-parting between the Nile and Congo basins, might not inaptly be named the " Explorers' Range." The crests following m 111 I TIIE WHITE NILE. 41 ring tho pst visits has been cuturacta :e8. The iJOO were the hills. ;e on the mingling 8 not the it spreads under the the lower Henoe, Somerset igarded as -Jebel, or e riverain iding at a Idle of the year it is re fringed drift with g islands o support hole mass the flora using the le stretvm. atly large the bed of rered with Owing to en choked ig alluvia. f places of Is skirting ind Congo following from south to north bear tb names of Schwoinfurth, Junker, ChippcnduU, Spt-ke, Emin, Baker, Gordon, and Qessi. The great bend described by the Nile b .ow the Dufli station, at an elevation of about 2,100 feet above the sea, marks a very important point in the hydrography of its basin. Here it is joined by several copious affluents, including the Asua or Asha, supposed by some geographers to flow from Lake Mbaringo (Baringo, Bahr Ingo), which Speke at one time identifiod with a north-east inlet of Victoria Nyanza, and whose very existence has since been questioned. But tho question has been practically settled by Thomson, who visited the district in 1884, and who determined the existence of Baringo and another large lake fartli> ^outh. The Asua, however, rises not in a luke, but in a hilly region east of the Somerset Nile, while the Mbaringo is a landlocked basin without any outflow. At their junction buih the Nile and the Asua, skirted right and left by hills, are ob'tructed by reefs, and even above the confluence the navigation of the main stream is completely obstructed by the Fola Rapids, which Wilson has named the " Eighth " Cataract. Here all vessels on the Upper Nile have to stop and tranship their cargoes, an inconvenience which has caused the Nile route to be almost abandoned above the rapids. After leaving the bend at Dufli, caravans for Victoria Nyanza strike south-eastwards, rejoining the Somerset Nile at Foweira, above the Earuma Bapids. This route, which has also been taken by the recent military expeditions from Egypt, is twice as short as that by the winding valley of the river. Below the Asua confluence the Nile is still obstructed here and there by rocky ledges, as at Yerbora, where it rushes between huge boulders, at Makedo, where it develops two falls over six feet high, and at Teremo-Garbo and Jenkoli-Garbo, where other rapids occur. But all of these impediments may be passed during the floods. Steamers freely ascend for nine months in the year as far as Ragat or Rejaf, and to the winding at Bedden below the falls forming the " Seventh " Cataract. But during low water they are unt^ble to get beyond the famous station of Gondokoro, or Ismailiya, which was long the capital of Upper Egyptian Sudan. The head of the navigation for larg^ vessels is indicated by the sandstone eminence of Rejaf, a perfectly regular cone of volcanic appearance terminating in a tower- shaped rock, which rises over 330 feet above the surrounding plain. At this point the Nile, according to the estimates of Dovyak and Peney, has a normal discharge of about 20,000 cubic feet, oscillating between 10,000 at low and 30,000 ut high water. During the floods it presents on imposing appearance at Gondokoro and Lado (Lardo), the new capital of the province of the equator. But flowing through an almost level plain, it soon ramifies into numerous lateral channels, while other secondary streams, intermingled with marshes and lagoons, wind right and left of the Bahr-el- Jebel, or Eir, as this section of the NUe is called by the Dinkas. The main stream itself branches off completely, the Nile proper continuing i*s north-westerly course, while the Bahr-ez-Zaraf, or " Giraffe River," winds for 160 miles through swamps and prairies northwards to a point where the two branches again unite. The Zaraf is described by Mamo not as a .=:mi>p 4S NORTH-EAST AFRICA. river in the proper Hense, but merely a khor or watercouriie, which is becoming yearly lesH navigablo, and already inaccessible to boats except for a short time during the floods. The whole low-lying region at present intersected by the Bahr-el-Jebel, the Zaruf and all their countless affluents, channels, and branches ^'as evidently at one time a vast lake, that has been gradually tilled up by the alluvia of these rivers. Its northern Fig. 11.— Fhom DuFitft TO Lauo. BotU 1 : 1,800,000. margin is indicated by the abrupt change in the course ox the Nile at the confluence of th(> Bahr-el-Ghazal, or "Gazelle River." At this point the whole system of waters is collected in a single channel, which is deflected eastwards along the escarpment of the upland Eordofan plains. A cavity of the old depression is still flooded by a remnant of the lake called the No, Nu, or Birket-el-Ghazal, whicsh, however, under the action of the currents and periodical floods, is continually over- flowing its marshy banks, shifting its place and modifying its outlines. Nowhere else is the Nile more obstructed by vegetable refuse as along this section of its course. The floating islands drifting with the current being arrested by the abrupt winding of the stream are collected together, and stretch at some points right across the channel, which thus becomes displaced. But the new channel is soon blocked by fresh masses of sedd, as it is called, which in many places covers a space of twelve miles. This sedd often acquires great consistency, supporting a dense g^wth of papyrus, and even of arborescent vegetation, beneath which the main stream continues its sluggish course. Numerous families of the Nuer tribe pitch their tents on the verdant surface, living exclusively on fish caught by piercing the foundations of their dwellings^ and on the grain of various species of nymphaoacese. In certain places along the banks of the river and surrounding swamps are seen myriads of earth-mounds, all raised above the highest level of the inundations by their architects, the termites, who ascend and deaoend from story to story with the flowing and ebbing stream. One of the most 5', y 3* 30' ^^ 3* io '3I'50- E -of Greanwioh 'SS'lS .aOMllea. .-Si mmmm THE WHTTK NILE. 48 becoming ihort time id by the branches up by the northern 10 abrupt ^ile at the ^hazal, or point the >llect«d in deflected ent of the cavity of toded by a e No, Nu, however, 'rents and ftUy over- bifting its aes. file more e as along le floating rent being ing of the iher, and across the displaced. )n blocked ; is called, ■s a space edd often lupporting and even beneath Ltinnes its IB families usively on e grain of the river above the scend and f the most remarkable inhabitants of this watery rogion is the haUenicepa rfr, a curious long- legged aquatic bird with grey plumage, which when perched on a termite's hillock looks from u distance like a Nuer fisherman. From the time when the envoys of Nero faUed to penetrate the sea of floating vegetation, explorers of the Fig. 12.— Rmion or tmb "Hud." Ba»l« 1 : a,ooc .ja i-A /■:*V-_ Nile have been frequently ar- rested by this obstacle. Dur- ing the latter half of the present century most of them have had to force their way through the tangled masses, and one of the channels thus formed by Miss Tinne's steamer still bears the name of Maya Signora. During the seven years from 1870 to 1877 the river was completely blocked, obliging all travellers to con- tinue their journey by the Bahr-ez-Zaraf . Many were de- tained for weeks and months on these pestiferous waters, over which hover dense clouds of mosquitoes. Here Gessi was arrested in 1880 with five hundred soldiers and a large number of liberated slaves, and three months elapsed before an Egyptian flotilla, under Mamo, was able to rescue them by opening a passage from below. Devoured by the insects, wasted by fever, and reduced to live on wild herbs and the dead bodies of their unfortunate comrades, most of the captives found a grave in the surrounding swamps, and nearly all the survivors perished of exhaustion soon after. Gtessi himself outlived the disaster only a few n months. To the lagoon of No must be attributed those " green waters " noticed at Cairo during the early days of June, when the stream, charged with vegetable 30*I0- aoMfle*. 44 NOUTII KAST AFIUCA. c»IluloN, (icquiroN u murNhy tastu iiiid Im'coiiich unwhoIcNoino. But uU thin rofumt is swppt uway or doMtroywl by tljo (irst flotxlH from the AbyHHiniun riverH, which thui reHtoro to the Nilo water itn oxceUcnt | opertios. The " Ottzello," which joinft the muin Htr^am in the No baiiin, in a " bahr," that is, a conHideruble river, flowing from the west, and during the AchmIh bringing nufficiont water to Hweop away the temporary obHtructionH. In itH chaun(!l are collected a hundred other rivers, whoso numbers and copiousness fonn a striking contniNt to the poverty or total absence of running waters characteristic of the Nile basin farther north. Altogether the affluents of the great river are dis- Fi«. 13.— Tmi Nit« AT Kmahtvm. tributed very irregularly, thus illustrating, as it were, the discrepancies of the climate. In the region of the plateaux the Victoria Nyanza and Somerset Nile receive feeders both from east and west, for the rainfall is here sufficiently heavy to cause watercourses to converge from all directions in the great lacustrine reservoir. But north of the Albert Nyanza the affluents occur alternately now on one now on the other bank of the Nile. In the section of its course terminating in the No lagoons it receives contributions only from the west, and farther north only from the Abyssinian highlands lying to the east. Then for a distance of 1,500 miles no more permanent tributaries reach its banks either from the right or the left. Even during the rainy season the gorges opening on its valley send ,jm i rofum) ia biuh thus i "bahr," 1 bringing uiuu!l are I Htrikiiig :io of tho * are dis- asm ies of the erset Nile itly heavy lacustrine ly now on rminating her north iBtance of e right or dley send m \^ r' ,^ THE WHITE NILE. 45 down very little water, and none at all for the rest of the year. Unique in this respect among the great rivers of the globe, the Nile seems for the greater part of its course to be a river destitute of tributary basins. On its west bank nothing occurs for 2,200 miles from its mouth except some wadies flushed during the rains. But then follows a sudden and remarkable contrast, due to the changed climatic conditions. All the triangular region comprised between the Bahr-el-Jebel, the Nile, and Congo water-parting, and the Dar-For uplands, is intersected by numerous perennial streams nearly converging in the direction of the old lacustrine basin now filled with alluvia and vegetable refuse. With their minor headstreams and affluents they form a vast and intricate hydrographic system, extremely difficult accurately to survey, especially owing to the varied and shifting nomenclature. Like the Nile itself, every secondary branch bears as many names as there are tribes in its valley or neighbourhood. The most important appear to be the Yei, which is lost in the swamps bordering the left bank of the Nile ; the Rol, flowing to the Bahr-el-Ghazal ; the Roa and Tonj, whose united waters form the Apabu ; the Diur, which reaches the Bahr-el-Ghazal near Meshra-er-Rek, and which is the most copious of its many affluents ; the Pango, a branch of the Diur ; lastly the Famikam, better known as the Bahr-el-Arab, which forms the northern limit of the whole region, and which, after its junction with the Ghazal, deflects the Nile eastwards. :• 1 Most of these streams have a very gentle incline, the most rapid being those that take their rise in the mountains near lake Albert Nyanza. Some have their source altogether in the plains, offering an almost imperceptible transition to the basin of the Congo. In their lower course the Rol, Diur, and some others have too slight a fall to scour their beds of the vegetation constantly accumulating. The consequence is that, like the Nile, they overflow their banks, during the floods converting the whole country for some thousands of square miles into an impassable morass. A large portion of the rainfall in this part of the Nile basin evaporates before reaching the main stream. Here the annual rains represent a volume greater than the whole discharge of the Nile at Cairo. At the point where it resumes its normal northerly course beyond the region of sedd, the Nile is joined on its east bank by the Sobat, which is also knowa by a great variety of names.* The Sobat, which drains a very large area, and which • Nomenclature of the Upper Nile and ita afilanntii : — Mle : Kivira, Somerset (between lakes Victoria and Albert) ; Mori (in the Madi country) ; Karre (by the Bari people) ; Kir (by the Denkas) ; Ter (by the Nuer) ; Bahr-el-Jebel (by the Arabs between Lakes Albert and No) ; Bahr-el-Abiad, or " White Kiver" (by the Arabs below the Sobat). 1V»: Ayi, Doghiirguru, Jemid, Eodi, Bahr-Lau. A>/: Nam-Pol, Ferial, WeUi.Yabo, Nam-Gel. "7. .^-v v, : v / £oa: Meriddi. Bahr-jaii. ''1; -. ':r,/ \ :f. ' . ,^ Tin/: Tondy, Lessi, Dnggoru, Kuan. j , vf JHur: Her6, Nyenani, Bahr-Wau, Ugul, Relaba. ;i lyS >: ^^^^'y-.^ui,^:.^:'-^^^^^.:^,-'-- Pango: Ji, Divhi, Ugakuer, Bahr-el-Homr. Famikam : Bahr-el-Arab, Lialui, Lol, Lolln, Komkom. . Sobat : Bahr-el-Mogald, Walk, Telflu, Wah, or Tab (by the Shiluks). Pinyin, or Tilfi (by the Nuer), Biel, Eieti, Eidi, or Kiradid (by the Dinkas). "Wi"-:I ' e ' UMK i g « JSW i :-,.. 46 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. Russegger mistook for the Nile itself, is the first affluent that receives any contributions from the Ethiopian highlands. It frequently sends down a greater volume than the main stream, whose waters during the floods are stemmed and driven back by its current. To judge from its whitish fluid contents, in which the blackish Nile water disappears, the Sobat has the best claim to the title of Bahr- el-Abiad, or " White River." Some of its affluents rise on the low-lying plains stretching east of the Nile ; but the most important has its source much farther east, in the upland valleys of the Ghesha range, which forms the water-parting between the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean basins. The Baro, which is one of the dozen different names of this affluent, on entering the plain traverses the Fig. 14. MuHRA-BR-Rnc IN THB Zabiba Beoion. Soole 1 : 2,900,000. . , aoltilM. marshy Lake Behair of ti.o Arabs, or " Sea of Haarlem," as it has been renamed oy the Dutch explorer Schuver. During the rainy season the Sobat sends down a vast quantity of water, on June 15, 1862, estimated by Pruyssenaere, 70 miles above the confluence, at 42,000 cubic feet per second. Hence during the floods the whole of its lower course is easily navigated ; but if large craft linger too long on its treacherous flood they run the risk of being landed high and dry on some shifting sandbank, as happened to the trader Andrea Debono, who was recently detained in the river for eleven months. * It is below the Sobat that the Nile takes currently the Arab name of Bahr-el- Abiad, or " White River," by which it is generally known to Europeans above Lves any , greater ined and 'hich the )f Bahr- tg plains b farther r-parting is one of erses the ■^ 1 renamed ds down a , 70 miles floods the )o long on r on some recently f Bahr-el- lans above THE BLUE NIIiE. 47 Khartum, where it is joined by the other Nile, called the Bahr-el-Azraq, or " Blue River." The contrast is certainly striking between the two currents, the former being charged with organic remains, turbid, and muddy, while the latter, flowing from a rocky roy:oi ., is generally much more limpid. But a greater contrast is presented by tho variations in their respective volumes according to the seasons. The western branch, which is by far the longest, the distance from Khartum to its still undetermined source being even greater than from that place to the Mediter- ranean, has also the most uniform discharge. Regulated by the g^eat equatorial lakes, and again by the swampy depressions about Lake No, its contents present comparatively less discrepancies from reason to season. But the impetuous Bahr- el-Azraq partakes rather of the nature of a torrent. As soon as the tropical downpours hefpn to fall on the Abyssinian plateaux, the effect is felt in its rocky channel. Then its discharge exceeds that of its rival, and it was on this ground that Bruce and many subsequent explorers claimed the first rank for the Abyssinian branch. But since the discoveries of Speke, Grant and Baker, it can be regarded only as an important tributary of the Bahr-el-Abiad. Its mean volimie is less considerable, nor is it navigable at low water. , , The Blue Nile. On the other hand, if it is the White Nile that maintains the perennial stream, to the Blue Nile is due its fertilising properties. Without the first there would be no Egypt ; but for the second the soil of this region would lack its inexhaustible fertility. Not only do the Abyssinians send down their quickening waters to the Nile delta, but they also supply it with the sedimentary matter by which the land is incessantly renewed, and the never-failing return of bountiful harvests insured. In the Ethiopian highlands is solved the mystery of the Egyptian stream, yearly overflowing its banks without apparent cause, and then retiring to its bed after accomplishing its beneficent work. It is to be regretted that the discharge of both rivers has not been accurately determined, the Nilometer at Khartum serving to estimate that of the Blue Nile alone* . ' ""' ■ At the confluence we at once enter regions known to the ancients. The Bahr- el-Azraq is the Astapus of Ptolemy, whose source was possibly known to the Romans. At least they make it rise in a lake, the Coloe Palus, although placing this lake some twelve degrees south of its actual position. Lake Tana (Tsana) is regarded as the reservoir giving rise to the Abai, which is usually taken as the upper course of the Blue Nile. But if length of course alone be taken into con- sideration, this honour should rather be awarded to the Beshto, which has its origin some 150 miles farther east. The Tana emissary, however, has the advantage of being much more constant in its discharge, thanks to the controlling action of the * Approximate estimate of the discharge of the two Kiles at Khartum per aeoond : — , , _ .^ ^ Bahr-el-Abiad. { Bahr-el-Aaraq. High water Low water 176,000 cubic feet. 10,000 „ High water Low water 213,000 cubic feet. 6,600 „ „ 48 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. lake, which rises slowly during the floods, and falls imperceptibly during the dry season. The yearly discrepancy between the levels of the lake scarcely exceeds forty inches. The Abai, its largest affluent, rises at Gish Abai, near the north-east foot of Mount Denguiya, some 60 miles fro;.i the lake. The Portuguese colony settled in this region towards the end of the sixteenth century certainly visited the sources of the Abai ; but they were first described by the Jesuit Paez, who tells us that the water, oozing from a marshy field, is collected in a limpid lake, supposed by the natives to be " unfathomable " because they cannot reach the bottom with their spears. Thence trickles a rivulet, whose course can be traced only by a surface growth of waving g^sses, but which over a mile lower down emerges in the open. This is the brook to which both the Portuguese and Bruce gave the name of the Nile. The fiery exhalations often seen flitting about its source, doubtless will-o'- the-wisps, have earned for the Abai the veneration of the natives, who still sacrifice animals to the local river genius. The stream has a width of over 30 feet where it reaches the south-west inlet of the lake, and where its turbid waters have developed an alluvial delta of considerable size. But the outlet, which retains the name of Abai, is a limpid blue current fully entitled to its Arabic designation of Bahr-el-Azraq. Like most other rivers which are at once affluents and emissaries of lacustrine basins, the Abai is constantly said to traverse lake Tsana without mingling with its water. But although such a phenomenon is well-nigh impossible, a perceptible current certainly appears to set steadily from the mouth of the affluent to th t of the outflow. Tsana cannot be compared for size to the great equatorial lakes. According to Stecker's survey, it has a superficial area of scarcely 1,200 square miles, or less than the twentieth part of Victoria Nyanza. But it must have formerly been more extensive than at present, as is evident from some alluvial plains found especially on the north side. It has the general form of a crater, except towards the south, where it develops into a gulf in the direction of its outlet. Hence the hypothesis advanced by several authors that it may have originally been a vast volcanic cone, and certainly some of the rounded islets in the neighbouring waters look like extinct craters, while the surrounding shores are diversified with bold basaltic headlands. The central part of the basin is probably very deep, for even in the southern inlet Stecker recorded a depth of 240 feet. The water is extremely pure, and as pleasant to the taste as that of the Nile. Towards the south-west the shore is fringed with dense masses of a long light reed undo donax), with which the natives construct their tankuas, frail skiffs or rafts propelled by two or four oars, and provided with raised, benches to keep the cargo dry. But very little traffic is carried on from coast to coast. Through the foliage which encircles this lovely sheet of water, little i^ visible except the distant hills and the conic islets rising above the sparkling surface. Herds of hippopotami are often seen on the shores, but there are no crocodiles in the lake, although the Abai below the cataract is infested by these reptiles. Nor has any European traveller seen the aila, a small species of manatee said by the natives to inhabit its waters ; which, however, abound THE BLUE NII^. id the dry exceeds foot of attled ia I sources , us that dby the Lth their i surface he open. 16 of the s will-o'- vho still ir 30 feet ters have stains the Ration of issarics of mingling ossible, a 16 affluent ording to ■ less than sn more in fish, chiefly cyprides of a different species from those of the Nile. A kind of bivalve also occurs, resembling the oyster in appearance and flavour. Issuing from the lake at an altitude of 6,200 feet, the Abai flows at first towards the south-east, forming a first fall near Woreb, 6 miles below the outlet. Expanding lower down to a width of about 650 feet, it winds along through shady fields to the Tis-Esat, or Alata Falls, where it is suddenly precipitated from a heiglit of over 80 feet into a yawning chasm shrouded in vapour. In the centre of the cascade stands a pyramidal rock surmoimted by a solitary tree constantly agitated by the breeze. Immediately below this spot the Abai plunges into a winding gorge, at one point scarcely 8 or 10 feet wide, crossed by a bridge of Portuguese construction. Some 30 miles farther on it is crossed by another bridge, the central arch of which has given way, its broken fragments forming a reef amid the tumultuous waters under- neath. The whole distance between these two bridges is little more than a succes- sion of falls and rapids, with a total descent of at least 2,000 feet. Alpine masses tower to the right and left above the gorge, which seems to have no outlet. But after describing a complete semicircle round the Abyssinian plateau, the Abai emerges on the plain in a north-westerly direction. The fall in this vast circuit is altogether over 4,000 feet, while throughout its lower course, terminating at the Khartum confluence, the incline is scarcely perceptible. Here it winds in gentle meanders between its alluvial banks, which are constantly yielding to the erosive action of the stream. During the dry season the Bahr-el-Azraq diminishes in volume downwards, and in many places may be easily forded. For more than half the year the Tabus and Tnmat, its chief tributaries from the south, are apparently merely dried-up wadies, although the water still percolates beneath the sands. The Rahad, or Abu-Ahraz, also one of its large eastern affluents, which rises on the west slope of the Abyssinian border range, is completely exhausted for a long way above the confluence before the wet season. But from June to the middle of September, when the rain falls in torrents on the mountain slopes, its vast bed overflows its banks, sttpplying abundant water to the cultivated riverain tracts. The Dender, however, another river rising in Abyssinia, appears to be perennial. Nowhere else would it be more useful or more easy to construct reservoirs and control the discharge than in this hydro- graphic basin, which at the confluence of the two great arteries at Khartum stands at an altitude variously estimated at from 1,250 to 1,450 feet above sea- level. The northern as well as the southern section of the Abyssinian plateau is also comprised in the Nile basin. But here the affluents of the great river rise, not on the western slope, but in the very heart of the highlands, close to the range forming the water-parting between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. The Takkaz^, main headstream of the whole Atbara hydrographic system, has its source at an elevation of nearly 7,000 feet, and flows at first westwards, as if to fall into Lake Tsana. But the gorge through which it descends between its crystalline schist walls rapidly attains a level far lower than thti ' of the Ethiopian uplands. At the point where the river trends northwards it has already fallen to an altitude of cou- 4 — AF. 60 NORTH-EAST APRIOA. sidcrably loss than 4,000 feet, and here its banks begin to be fringed by a tropical vegetation. On descending from the surrounding mountains, which are swept by cold winds, the sensation is like that felt on entering a hothouse. The Atbara. After its escape from the region of the plateaux, the Tukkaz^ resumes its westerly course, and at last reaches the plain through a series of rugged gorges. Here it takes the name of the Setit, and is joined by the Atbara, which is much less in volume and hardly half its length ; but the mean direction of its valley, beginning immediately west of Lake Tsana, is the same as that of the united streams. The Atbara, like the Mississippi on joining the yellow and turbid waters of the powerful Missouri, gives its name to the hydrographic system ; the Goang, one of the tributaries of the Takkazd, rises in the north in the depression of Lake Tsana, from which it is separated only by a ridge 165 feet high. Below the confluence the Atbara, which retains the ancient name given it by Ptolemy under the form of Astaboras, gradually diminishes in volume, as does also its former affluent, the Mareb, which in its upper course describes one of those large semi- circular curves so characteristic of the Abyssinian rivers. In fact, the Mareb, or the " River of the West," as it is called by the Abyssinians from the direction of its course, may be said to have ceased to be an affluent of the Atbara. Called the " Sona " in its middle and " Gash " in its lower course, where it is only an inter- mittent stream, it flows northwards parallel with the Atbara, and runs out in the alluvial lands before reaching its former outlet, called by the Hadendoa nomads " Gash-da," i.e. " Mouth of the Gash." On visiting the country in 1864, Mun- zinger found that its bed had not been once flooded for twenty years. This change in the local hydrography doubtless arises from the irrigation works constructed on the left bank of the Gash. Embanked on this side, the river flows to the right, eating away its eastern and highest cliffs. Its course, formerly at right angles, now becomes parallel to the Atbara ; but as it flows northwards it finally runs dry in the sands. In 1840. Ahmed Pasha, the Egyptian conqueror, tried again to divert the Gash westwards into the Atbara, but his embankment was undermined by the riverain population of the lower plain. Till recently the river Barka, or Baraka, flowing into the swamps on the Red Sea coast not far from Suakin, was also supposed to belong to the Nile basin through a branch of the Mareb. This tradition differs little from that related by Strabo, according to which a branch of the Astaboras flowed to the Red Sea. The hypothesis may perhaps be partly due to a confusion of names, for the plain stretching east of the Mareb towards the Atbara is called Barka, or Baraka, a term also applied to the channel flowing east- wards. However this be, the Axumite Ethiopians, and after them the Abyssinians, who long identified the true Nile with their Takkaz^, fancied for centuries that it would be easy to divert their river into the sea and thus deprive Egypt of the water required for its crops. This illusion, however, was also entertained by foreigners, and is referred to by Ariosto in his " Orlando Furioso." Repeating the threat of '•.»J i tropical swept by sumos its i gorges. L is much ts valley, 16 united (id waters le Goang, I of Lake Jelow the my under ts former rge semi- •eb, or the ion of its dialled the an inter- 3ut in the la nomads i64, Mun- lis change tructed on the right, ht angles, ■f runs dry i again to adermined Barka, or uakin, was •eb. This ; branch of partly due jwards the iwing east- byssinians, ries that it f the water foreigners, e threat of llji i lmi. Iij i i fl |.i »iy m I J«i» i n i it iij i^ i ffHW ii r ili n ii i| i i nwl i vyf^imju mi i pi i m*»,fm i w i hiw t THE ATBAItA. 61 Albuquerque, who asked the King of Portugal to send him workmen from Madeira to assist him in making a new bed for the Nile to the Red Sea, Theodore, " king of Kg. 16.— Basin op thb Nilk Apvlubnts. Scale 1 : 18,500,000. .800 Miles. kings," boasted that he would divert the Mareb into the Barka, in order to create a famine in Egypt and compel the Khedive to capitulate. During the dry season, the Atbara, unlike the Blue Nile, fails to reach the main stream. Its bed, 440 yards broad, is completely dry ; " a desert within a desert," It w merely a waste of shimmering sands, to which the distant mirage gives the 62 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. appearance of Hparkling water. But in the lower bed of the Atbara a few pools are scattered here and there. They owe their exiHtence partly to the hollows that the eddies have excavated many yards below the normal bed, and partly to the trees that lino the bank preventing the water from evaporating. In these pools, some more than half a mile in length, others reduced to an extent of a few square yards, are crowded together, in a space much too small for their mutual ease and safety, all the river fauna — fishes, turtles, crocodiles, and even the hippopotamus ; the wild animals resort likewise to these pools teeming with life, and every palm and every thicket along the bank has its colony of birds. In most of the rivers on the plain the water brought back with the rainy season returns gently into its channel. Preceded by a current of air, which ca^.w8 the foliage along its banks to thrill with life, it advances with a sound like the rustling of silk. The first sheet of water is a mere mass of yellowish foam mixed with debris of all sorts ; following this mixture of mud and water comes a second wave, the true fluvial stream ; then appears the normal current, towards which the animals rush to quench their thirst. But the powerful volume of the Atbara rushes on like an avalanche ; when it again fills its bed, it is not by a slight and gradual advance, but by a sudden rush of water sweeping everything before it. The traveller sleeping on its sandy bed is suddenly awakened by the trembling of the earth, and by an approaching roar like that of thunder. " El Bahr ! el Bahr ! " shout the Arabs, and there is scarcely time to rush to the bank to escape the advancing flood, driving before it a mass of mud, and bearing on its first waves reeds, bamboos, and a thousand other spoils torn from its banks. Presently the river bed is completely flooded, a quarter of a mile broad, and from 18 to 40 feet deep, flowing on as calmly as if its current had never been ruffled. Like the Blue Nile, the Atbara, called also by the Arabs the Bahr-el- Oswad, or " Black River," flows into the Nile, and running with it from cataract to cataract, sends down to the lower reaches that muddy sediment by which the fertility of the soil is ever renewed. The Nubian Nile. ' * Below the junction of the two Niles, north of Khartum, the river has no more visible affluents during the dry season, the lower bed of the Atbara itself being quite exhausted. But it probably receives hidden streams, for through evaporation, lateral filtrations, and the loss sustained in irrigating the riverain plains, the stream is diminished only by a seventh according to Lombardini, and by a fifth according to Gothberg, in the entire section of 1,620 miles between Khartum and Cairo. In the great bend that it describes in its course through Nubia it is diminished very slowly ; but to the eyes of the traveller its volume does not appear to be modified during this long course over a considerable portion of the earth's circumference. As the Nile discharges a quantity of water eqasl to four times that of the Loire, or seven times that of the Seine, merchant vessels might penetrate through this highway to the centre of the continent, were it not obstructed at intervals by numerous rocky barriers. The Nubian Nile is thus divided by six natural barriers r pools 1^8 that le trees 8, some B yards, safety, the wild d every be plain channel, rill with ater is a mixture tears the But the a fills its of water suddenly :e that of J time to of mud, »m from ile hroad, 3ver been Bahr-el- i cataract rhich the ^rtum i no more lelf being iporation, le stream according airo. In shed very modified mference. the Loire, ough this «rvals by ,1 barriers THE NUBIAN NILE. 68 into seven navigable reaches ; ror can vessels pass from one to the other except at high water, or without the aid of hundreds of bunds to haul them over the rapids or check their downward course. Were the waters of the Nile not retained by these obstructions, and were the stream allowed to flow freely during the dry season, the question may be asked whether there would be sufiicient water for the whole year ; would a delta have ever been developed or an Egypt created ? Preceded, between Tamaniat and the Jebel Melekhat, by two steep rapids and — . Fig. 16. — CiTARACT or Hamnbk. Soala 1 : 80,000. 1,100 Yard*. a gorge commanded by two basaltic columns, the sixth and most southern cataract between Ehartiun and the mouth of the Atbara would hardly be thought worthy of the name on such rivers as those of Canada and Scandinavia, where the still- undeveloped valleys have preserved their abrupt declivities notwithstanding the constant erosive action of the running waters. This cataract of Garri is rather a rapid caused by the presence of granite reefs at this point; still it suffices to interrupt the navigation for the greater part of the year. When the railway. ■':m 64 NORTII-EAHT AFRICA. destined to bocomo the coniTncrcial outlet of the whole Upper Nile ba«in, shall connect the llefl Sea coust with the Atbum und Nile confluence, this line will have to Im) extended up ntroum as fur uh the cataract of Garri to allow of uninterrupted traflic. The fifth calaract, which is followed by the rapids of (ierasheb, Mograt, and others between Jlerlnir and Abu-IIamed, obstructs the navigation only at low water ; but farther down occur more serious natural impediments. Most travellers crossing Nubia between tSudan and Kgypt follow the land route from Abu-IIamed to Korosko, not merely because of the vast semicircle described westwards by the Nile ill this part of its course, but also because its bed is here obstructed by three Figf. 17.— Kaibak Cataract. SoiOe 1 : 19,000. 1,660 TardB. series of cataracts. One of these groups of rapids, known as the " fourth cataract," is of considerable length, and is divided into many stages like a series of sluices. First comes Dulga Island, a high rock crowned by a ruined fortress ; then follow other granite boulders visible above the water, but without interrupting the navigation. This tirst barrier is succeeded by islands and sandbanks, followed by more rocks, dividing the river into steep channels, and the gorge ends near Gerendid, in a sort of gateway formed by two rocks covered with the ruins of fortresses. Here are no trees like those on the fifth or the third cataract situated below New Dongola, not a patch of verdure on the bank to soften the wild grandeur <•»■«»■?»*■ THE NUULVN NILK. M of tho Hconory. Nothing moots llio gnzo except water, rm-k, siiml, luid mUv, until it is arroHtcd farthor down by tlio bold headland of Mount Jiarkal. Tho " third " cataract, like tho othcTH, compriMOH Hoveral partial fallw, below an anctont ialund-studdiKl lake, whoro tho river expands to u width of nonio seven niiloM between itH two bankH. At the firHt granite roof, that of Ilannek, ho culled from a Nubian caHtle on itH left bank, the Rtreum, divided into a thounund foaming ohannelN, prenentn u more decided fall. Iloro blackiHh rockB of hornbhrnde luid feldH])ur project from twenty-four to twenty-six feet above low water. The river- craft do not venture amid the openings of thiH irregular barrier ; but under tho right bank runn a channel broad enough to allow two boatn to pass abreast. At the entrance of the cataract a few trees festooned with creeperfl overhang, in dense archoH, reefs which are carefully avoided on account of the venomous snakes which infest them. Lower down more islands are scattered in raid-stream, their verdure contrasting vividly with the black rocks. The Ilannek rapids have a total length of 4 miles, and the difference of level between the two extreme points varies from 18 fett at low water to 10 feet during tho floods. It is thus evident that the fall ia hero comparatively slight, as is the case in most of the other cataractH. Below Hannek tho Nile trends sharply east and north towards the Kaibar or Eajbar bank, which during the dry season seems to completely obstruct tho stream. It has the appearance of an artificial dyke, which by a peculiar optical illuHion, due to the contrast between the ' 'rk rock and the greyish water, seems to rise to a considerable height. The rock must lie approached qmte closely to find the tortuous outlets through which the foaming channels of the Nile escape. During the floods the Eaibar barrier is entirely concealed, leaving free passage to the stream between its banks. Tho Wadi-Halfa, or " second cataract," is the point where most European and American travellers making the " tour of the Nile " bring their journey to a close. • Tho rock of Abu-Sir, which commands its tumidtuous waters and affords a magnificent iininterrupted view of the southern horizon, is scrawled all over with the names of adventurous tourists, proud of having penetrated so far up the mysterious river. Although this cataract stretches over a space of more than fifteen miles, it forms merely the lower portion of the series of rapids known as the Batn-el-Hagar, which have a total length of about eighty miles. The river presents everywhere the same aspect throughout the whole of this section. Its broad bed is strewn with boulders, most of them rounded off like stones polished by glacial action ; whilst others are disposed vertically like basalt columns, or else cut up into jagged crests, bristling with sharp and needle-like spines. Between these reefs rusli the winding channels, each forming a separate cascade ; elsewhere occur landlocked basins, in which the whirlicg waters seem completely arrested. To these succeed other rapids, falls, and eddiefi; the cataract thus breaking up into a thousand partial falls. But at low water these minute thread-like streams are scarcely visible, being lost in the vast maze of shoals and channels. Excluding the reefs, the archipelago consists of three hundred and fifty-three islands and islets, each with its Nubian name, more than fifty of them being inhabited and I! 1 1 I; i^ B« XOUTIl-KAHT AFUIfA. cullivjitPfl. Farther north the right hank is nkirtcd hy a o?i ' o' oxtinofc volnanoos forininp^ u continuation to the rockii of tho cataract. neb, crutivs, ruffPfod cragn, moundit of indurattxl anhoH, hillockH of lava, ntand out with ♦' eir thoufwind varied forms againnt tho hnri/on of tho Lihyan doHcrt. Tho " first " outanicf, that of ANuan, in neither ho hmg nor so uniform an thot of Wadi-IIulfa, nor dooH it prcNont tho name dcHoIato appearan(re, but it none the loHs doHorvoH tho name btHjueathed to uh by the anciontH. It also consiHts of a neriefl of rapids ondlosMly ramifying amid tho granite rockH of divers fonns and colours, mostly destitute of vegetation, but offering here and there grand or charming pictures with their piled up rocks amid the foaming waters, and their picturesque groups of palms, tamarinds, or thickets festooned with lianas. The approaches of tho cataract are guarded above by the island of I'hilce, at once u temple and a garden ; and below by Elephantine, the " Island of Flowers," whose beauties are mirrored in the waters of the stream. Their historical memories and associations also contribute to render the sight of these rapids one of those spectacles that challenge the attention of the observer in the highest degree, and that leave an indelible impression on tlie memory. Here is the " gate " of Egypt ; here, since tho commencement of recorded history, we trace, as it were, a visible boundary between two worlds, fiy a remarkable coincidence this boundary is almost indicated by the Tropic of Cancer, for it was close to Asuan that for the first time astronomers saw, at the summer solstice, the sundials deprived of their shadow and the wells pierced to the bottom by the solar rays. Another world began for thera beyond this ideal line ; it seemed to them as if in the torrid everything must contrast with the phenomena of the temperate zone. Even at the present day we are easily led to exaggerate all the local differences between the regions stretching on either side of the cataract and the populations inhabiting them. At high water the navigation is not arrested along this so-called cataract. Boatmen pass with safety up and down ; but at low water the passage either way on the thousand arms of " Neptune's vast staircase " is only to be accomplished by the aid of the "chellala," or "men of tho cataract," who tow or check the boats by means of hawsers. About fifty large ilhahabiyi, engaged by the tourists, yearly brave the dangers of the falls, and thanks to the experienced pilots employed, accidents are rare. The skill of the boatmen in descending the cataracts displays itself in keeping the boat on the central crest formed by the stream, at times rising six or even more feet above the main body of water skirting the rocks ; from the top of this moving hill the pilot commands the foaming rapids. The moment the boat swerves right or left from the crest of the wave the danger begins ; if the sailors are unable to redirect it into the current by oar or rudder, it is inevitably dragged into the eddies at the sides and exposed to the rocks, compared by the Arabs to monsters who " bite " it to pieces as it is borne along. .; ^ At the sight of these rapids it may be asked, while allowing for the poetical exaggeration of the ancient descriptions, whether the obstructing reefs were not much higher two thousand years ago, and whether the Nile did not at that period form a veritable fall. Tn fact, it is probable that the river then fell in a cascade -\. '"v: ;,*?'? tT"^ if f»»tinct b, crutors, vith ♦^ tur a UH thut nono tho Hints of a nrtiia and charming ctureMjue oachefl of plo and a iiuties are isociations icles that t leave an lere, since boundary is almost first time ladow and for them ling must it day we stretching '. cataract, (ither way tlished by the boats sts, yearly employed, 9 displays mes rising from the >ment the IS ; if the inevitably the Arabs e poetical were not lat period a cascade — ' ' ' * ' ''' '' ''^ * * % * P» .!*!!*^gg;^tiJiJi''!!i ; ^ ' -?.^ -** ■ ^ ,-f THE LOWER NILE. 67 over a lofty granite ledge. The desert east of the rapids is intersected by an old branch of the r:'ver running at several yards above the present high-water level. Even the most superficial observer of natural phenomena cannot fail to perceive that he is travelling in a now abandoned watercourse. He still perceives the windings of the stream between rocks covered with hieroglyphic inscriptions ; he observes its old cliffs and banks, and here and there the alluvia are still revealed under the billows of sand drifting before the winds from the desert. The records deciphered by archaoologists describe the march of armies along this old river bed, from the times of Thotmes and Rameses down to the present day. According to the observations made by Lepsius at Semne above the second cataract, it is probable that, from the beginning of Egyptian history, this dried-up channel was once flooded by a branch of the Nile. During the reign of Amenemha III., some 4,700 years ago, the watermarks engraved on the rocks at this place show that the flood level exceeded by many yards that of the present time : the highest water- mark exceeds by 25 feet, the lowest by 13 feet, the corresponding levels of modem days. On the right bank of the Hannek cataract also M. de Gottberg has found alluvial deposits 10 feet above the level of the highest modern floods. May not the waters have been thus arrested by the cataracts, and forced to flow into the now dried-up valley which serves as a highway between Egjrpt and Nubia P Above the Batn-el-Hagar rapids are to be seen many tracts formerly cultivated but now quite sterile, since the waters of the floods no longer reach them. Like all river valleys whose beds are regulated by the action of running waters, that of the Nile establishes its equilibrium by falling in Nubia and again rising in Lower Egypt. M. de Gottberg accounts for the lowering of the water- level in Nubia through the disappearance of cataracts formerly existing between Wadi-HaKa and Asuan, traces of which are still visible. The rocks forming these cataracts consist of schists, which, unlike the crystalline reefs, yielded to the destructive force of the stream. The granite rocks themselves also yield to the same action, but much more gradually. The Lower Nile. Below the granite ledge washed by the waters of the first cataract, the cliffs lining the river bank are composed of layers of sandstone, succeeded farther on by limestone rocks. Historic Egypt begins at the foot of this rocky barrier, which is covered on either side by tertiary deposits. North of Asuan the banks of the river are at first separated only by a space of from two to three miles. The fields and plants hemmed in between the escarpments and the stream present on either side nothing but a narrow strip of verdure winding along the foot of the grey or yellow rocks, which glitter like burnished gold in the sun. The cultivated zone lies chiefly to the west, along the so-called " Libyan " bank, which is most exposed to the solar rays. Like most other rivers of the northern hemisphere, the Nile bears chiefly towards its right bank, the current skirting the foot of the rocks, which at some points rise sheer above the stream. The lowna stand mostly on the left bank, .-*.; ?3!e . 58 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. although several left high and dry by the retreating waters have frequently had to shift their sites in order to maintain their communication with the river. At the defile of Silsile, or the " Chain," where the valley, 4,000 feet across, appears w have formerly been barred by an iron chain, the landing-stages adjoin the old quarries which supplied blocks of stone and statues for the palaces of the Pharaohs, A sphinx's head is still to be seen here not yet detached from the rock. From this point the mountains begin to diverge on both sides, the river winding in a plain about 9 miles broad, the first below the cataract that affords sufficient space for the site of a large town. Here formerly stood Thebes of the hundred gates. Farther on the valley becomes wider; the distance from mountain to mountain varying from Fig. 18. — The Kbnkh Valley on the Route to Koseik. Scale 1 : 660.000. E . of Greenwich j3°50 53°I0 n ilUeti. 12 to 16 miles ; but in this part of its course, as well as above Thebes, the river bears chiefly towards its right bank, eroding the base of the cliffs of the Arabian range. On the left side the hills are mere sardy dunes shifting and modifying their form with every gust of wind. The cultivated tracts are here invaded by the Libyan desert, an extensive view of whose dreary wastes may be obtained from the crests of the western range. ; , ■ , Near Keneh, 36 miles below Thebes, the Nile describes that great curve which brings it neareiit to the Red Sea. At this point it is distant from the coast, in a straight line, not more than 60 miles. Preoisely in this direction the eastern range is broken by one of the deepest transverse ravines occurring throughout its whole course, and it may be asked whether, in some remote geological epoch, the Nile 'equently river. 3t across, djoin the Pharaohs, From this n a phiin 36 for the Farther fing from 26' 26' h river bears lian range, their form le Libyan le crests of irve which coast, in a tern range t its whole , the Nile • *> ' mmi} ,m i mi M^ ' mn «n>nf . y THE LOWER NILE. 69 may not ^ave flowed through this breach towards the Red Sea. Beaches of rolled pebbles, whxch could only have been deposited by running waters, are found in his gorge both on the slope of the Nile and on that of the sea. It s probably he traces of a former channel that have suggested to the vivid imagination of th Fig. 19.— Head op thb Idkahimieh Canal. Scale 1 : 425,000. 6 Miles. Arabs the idea that it would be easy to divert the Nile into its former bed, always supposing that this ravine did once receive the waters of the river But if the course of the Nile cannot be deflected into this lateral gully, it would at least be easy to construct a railway through it, which would make the port of KoseVr the '1 - "N % ^v' 60 NOR'ifl-EAST AFRICA. chief commercial outlet of all Upper Egypt. Over fifty years ago the English already sank wells at intervals along this gorge, with the view of utilising it for the overland route to India. • After flowing westwards below the great bend of Keneh, the Nile trends north- west and north ; but in this part of its course it bifurcates, one arm branching off and flowing parallel with it on the west side at a mean distance of seven miles. This is the Bahr-Yusef, or " River of Joseph," so called in memory of Pharaoh's minister mentioned in the Jewish traditions, or rather of a certain Joseph, minister of the Fatimites in the twelfth century. But it does not appear to have been excavated by the hand of man, although it has been frequently embanked, deflected, and directed into lateral channels, like all the running waters of the valley. Recently the point of derivation has been displaced, and the canal named Ibrahimieh has been raised to the level of the high banks in order more easily to regulate the discharge of the flood waters. In the part where it has not been canalised the Bahr-Yusef, skirted along its left bank by the dunes drifting before the desert wind, is a winding stream like the Nile, having, like it, its islands, sand- banks, eroded clifiEs, and network of watercourses and false rivers. Its mean breadth is about 330 feet, but through it very little of the Nile waters are distributed. Feeders from the main stream, in traversing the intermediate plain, replenish the River of Joseph at intervals, thus making good the losses caused by evaporation. This phenomenon, of two parallel streams in one and the same valley, one the main stream discharging nearly the whole liquid mass, the other a small current winding through an ancient river Lod, recurs in nearly all those valleys whose hydrographic system has not yet been completely changed by canalisation and drainage works. Several rivers skirted by embankments have also their Bahr- Yusef, like the Nile. Such in France is the ^ "ire, skirted by the Cisse, by the waters derived from the Cher, the Indre, aid the Vienne; lastly by the river Authion, with its numerous ramifications. The Fayum Depression^ j About 300 miles from the point of bifurcation, the Bahr-Yusef penetrates into a lateral valley, where it ramifies in its turn. The eastern branch, which con- tinues the river properly so-calhid, penetrates north-eastwards through a breach in the Libyan range, beyond which it rejoins the Nile above its delta. But the western branch trends abruptly north-westwards to a rocky gorge, at the entrance of which its course is regulated by a three-arched bridge built in the thirteenth century, and furnished with flood-gates allowing the stream to pass, or diverting it to the surrounding plains. Beyond the barrage the canal v.aids through a ravine about 6 miles long In the Libyan range, at the outlet of which it suddenly debouches in a valley of amphitheatral form, and nearly 110 miles in circum- ference. This is the Fayum depression, which is watered by an intricate system of canals, rills, and rivulets, ramifying like the veins and art-eries in a living organism. At its lowest point this hill-encircled basin is estimated at from 86 to 116 feet ■I t .< l l ) » . l l 'w . ll»l#lly t ll THE FAYUM DEPRESSION. 61 e English ng it for ids north- branching I of seven nemory of lin Joseph, ir to have embanked, ters of the tnal named 6 easily to s not heen ;ing hefore Emds, sand- 3an hreadth iistributed. iplenish the ivaporation. ey, one the Lall current eys whose isation and their Bahr- isse, by the Y the river .etrates into which con- rh a breach But the he entrance thirteenth ►r diverting through a it suddenly in circum- te system of g organism, to 116 feet below the level of the Mediterranean. Although apparently quite flat, it has a sufficient incline for the waters of the canal derived from the Bahr-Yusef to circulate throughout the whole area, imparting to the Fayxmi a fertility rivalling that of the Nile delta itself. The superfluous water is collected towards the south in the small Lake Gara'a, or the " Hollow," whence it formerly penetrated far into the Wady Reyan. Towards the west the system of canalisation converges in a large lake about 30 miles long from south-west to north-east. This reservoir, _ Fig. 20. — Entrangb of thb Fayum. Soale 1 : 1RO,000. or breenwich 3MUe(. known as the Birket-el-Kerun, is but slightly brackish, and quite drinkable by animals when it floods the whole western depression of the valley. But when reduced by evaporation it becomes saline, and the margin is then covered with crystalline efilorescences resembling snow at a distance. In some places the muddy ground, clothed like tho Algerian sehkhnn with a slight incrustation of salt, forms treacherous quagmfros, dangerous to man and beast. Till recently the superfluouK v^ aters were supposed to escape through a rocky gorge in the hills north of the Fayum Valley, to the depression known as the ■./^ ;•:.'! •' * ^■liP^^i— IBM 62 NOETH-EAST AFRICA. Bahr-bel&-m&, or "Waterless Sea." But this 'lypothesis has not been confirmed by the latest surveys, which have failed to discover any alluvial deposits indicating the presence of the stream at this point. The planks and masts of Nile boats spoken of by the Arabs are the stems of petrified trees, such as occur in various parts of the desert. The Fayum, the Arsinoitidis of the ancients, has been the sceno of some of the most remarkable hydraulic operations of the old Egyptian engineers. Before the Fig. 21.— Faycm. Soale 1 : 476,000. a0'40- il" L . of Greenwich Boina of the dyke of T • : ' Moaib. 6 Mllee. interference of man the whole depression, which received all the waters of the Bahr-Yusef, formed an extensive inland sea. On this point tradition is unani- mous, and in any case the continuous inflow must have flooded the cavity to a level sufficiently high to establish an equilibrium between the discharge and the loss by evaporation. The very name of Fayum (Piom, Phaiom), is said to mean " flooded land " in the old Egyptian language, although the Arabic word fayyum itself gives the appropriate sense of '* corn-bearer." But after the Bahr-Yusef II •» Mill II I jonfirmed adicating ile boats a various ne of the Jefore the ^•^ ich «r8 of the is unani- avity to a je and the d t,o mean )rd fay yum iahr-Yusef THE FA YUM DEPRESSION. 68 was dammed at its entrance into the gorge, the " sea " became gradually reduced to a semicircular morass, and would dry up altogether but for the sluices which admit the water required for irrigation purposes. It was no slight matter to have thus reclaimed an extensive district, where as many as oiio hundred and fifty villages are said to have flourished. But according to the most probable supposition, supported by a careful survey of the whole region, the more elevated portion of the reclaimed land was converted into the famous Luke Ma>ris, which was one of the wonders of the old world, and which, centuries after its disappearance, must still bv) ranked amongst the most astounding works of man. The remains of embankments in some places 200 feet broad at their base, and 60 feet high, appear to represent on the east side the outer enclosures of the vast basin which during the floods received the discharge of the Bahr-Yusef , estimated at about the twenty-sixth part of the whole Nile. At the angles of the embankment arc still visible the remains of pyramids recording the fame of Amencmha III., by whom this stupendous reservoir was created some forty-seven centuries before the opening of the Suez Canal. Herodotus, who may perhaps have seen though ho did not measure it, gives it an enormous circumference, far greater in fact than that of the whole Fayum. According to Linant, it occupied an area of 120 square miles in the eastern portion of the Fayum, and at the end of the floods its volume must have exceeded 100,000,000 cubic feet. A small portion of this prodigious storage may have served to inigate the western Fayum; but nearly all the overflow taken from the Nile during high water was distributed over the plains during the dry season, and sufficed to irrigate 460,000 acres of land. None of the great modern reservoirs can be compared with this great work, either for size or skilful design. Most of them are merely artificial lakes, which receive the whole fluvial discharge, and distribute the excess to the lower river basin. But the stream itself is continually sapping the foundations, and too often bursting the banks of its reservoir.. It woidd, however, be difficult now to restore Lake Moeris, whose bed has been so greatly raised by alluvial deposits that the retain- ing walls and embankments would have to be carried several yards higher than formerly. The Bahr-Yusef is continued imder diverse names to the delta, but in its lower course the discharge is very slight. Nearly all its feeders, as well as the other channels and watercourses, a/e gathered up by the main stream at the head of the delta, whence they again ramify in a thousand branches over the plains of Lower Egypt. Hence at this point the Nile presents much the same appearance as in Nubia, or still higher up at the Khartum confluence. It glides ir a slow and regular current between its banks, reflecting in its stream the trees, gray mud villages, and here and there a few white buildings. Nothing sudden or abrupt in this vast and sleeping landscape, %?hose monotony is broken only by a few dhahabiy^, or Nile boats, and above which is suspended an everlasting azure firmament. On either side the narrow plains, the cliflPs, the ravines, and terraces succeed each other in endless imiformity. In this land of simple outlines, little surprise is caused even by the regular forms of the pyramids skirting the western * .-"-i \:4 64 NORTH-EAST AFRTOA. II edge of the plateau, at dawn pink and hazy cones, liko flames of fire dimly seen in the brighter sunshine, at sunset gloomy triangular masses standing out against a brazen sky. The NiLK Delta. Below Cairo the two ranges of hills, confining the Nile as in a ditch, gradually retire as they mei-ge in the plainn, leaving the river to ramify and flow through divergent branches into the Mediterranean. The triangular disposition of this alluvial plain has caused the term delta* to be applied to the whole region, and by Pig. 22. — RoBBTTA Mouth. flcale 1 : SOO.Onn. 50'85 L OT Greenwich Otol6 Feet 16 to 83 82 Feet and apwsid*. 3 Mile*. I I analogy to all districts of similar formation, however irregular their contours. Spite of all the changes that have taken place in the local geography since it was first described by Herodotus two thousand five himdred years ago, the Egyptian delta has remained a model of elegance in the harmony of its divergent branches and the indentations of its contours. .-i-',;:, > ., < At the dawn of history the head of the delta lay more to the south, the bifurcation being situated some four miles below the present suburb of Bulak at Cairo. But the intermediate apex being unprotected by a system of embankmenta * That is, the name of the triangular Greek letter d = D. '» , i' < j j| ii iui; «: ii.i 150 51* £5 contours. ly since it ago, the divergent THE NILE DELTA. 8S it yielded from year to year, from century to century, to the incessant action of the stream. The whole delta thus becomes displaced from south to north, according as the river beds are raised and the mouths extended seawards by the accumulation of alluvial deposits. At present the Batn-el-Bagaru fork is over 12 miles from Cairo, following the windings of the island-studded stream, and has consequently been displaced at the annual rate of about 24 feet. Analogous changes have taken place throughout the whole of the delta, where the current has eaten its banks now to the right, now to the left, where simple channels have become broad watercourses, while- copious streams have disappeared or shifted their beds. Under the influence of the mystic ideas prevalent regarding the value of numbers, the old writers unanimously agreed to reckon seven chief branches in the delta, all the others being regarded as " false mouths." At the same time the normal direction of the streams required for imgation purposes was carefully maintained during peaceful epochs by incessant dredging, embankments, and works of canalisation. It is now, however, no longer possible ^o trace the course of the seven ancient branches, which, left to themselves, resumed their erratic tendencies, shifting their beds with every fresh inundation. But there is a general agree- ment regarding their main direction, and many doubtful points of the hydrology of the Nile as described by Herodotus and Strabo have been cleared up by the naturalists of the French expedition to Egypt at the close of the last century. At present two main branches only are enumerated, and these are indicated on the convex curve of the seaboard by two points formed by the tongues of alluvial land advancing continually seawards. They are the Rashid or B^setta branch, identified with the Bolbitinis of the ancients, and that of Damietta, which formerly bore the names of Phatnetica and Bucolica. The Rosetta branch, some 14 miles the shorter of the two, but flowing in a bed from 30 to 50 inches lower, carries oS the largest quantity of water, leaving not more than four-ninths to that of Damietta and the intermediate Menufieh channel.* Nevertheless the Damietta River, thanks to its greater elevation, is much more available for irrigpation purposes. The two branches, diverging like the radii of a circle, flow respectively north-west and north-east, advancing at their mouths some 5 miles beyond the normal coast-line. But, like all rivers falling into the Mediterranean, both are half closed by mud and sandbanks, barring the passage to large vessels. The western or Rosetta River has two channels from 7 to 8 feet deep, while that of Damietta, being less open, has a depth of scarcely 65 inches at its entrance. At high water, when there is a discharge of 470,000 cubic feet per second, the bar is reduced not more than 4 or 5 inches, its elevation depending more on the action * Discharge of the Nile at low water in 1876, according to Ali Pasha Mubarck : — CuUofeet Bosetta branch 6,370 Damietta , 8,660 Menufieh channel 670 Total .... : ♦ .- .... 16,600 Mean 166,000 r i 6 — AF. ■1 -'■S ■'■■'." m i 86 NORTTI-EAST AFEICA. o£ the marine currents than on the inland flomlH. Hut if its height is little modified, itH position is oftou shifted several miles. During the inundations the current of the Nile is felt 3 miles seawards, and at times is strong enough to perceptibly reduce the violence of the waves, thus offering a temporary refuge to storm-tossed vessels. The face of the delta is gradually encroaching on the sea, but at > much slower rate than might bo expected from the quantity of sedimeutary matter brought Fig. 2S. — Damiktta Mo^th. Soolo 1 : S00,000. 52* 5' L . of Greenwicn 58 'IS' Otol6 Feet. Fiet. SS Feet nnd upwards. SUilei. down by the Nile. Even the estimate of 13 or 14 feet annually, as calculated by Elie de Beaumont on a study of the old and medisoval documents bearing on this point, seems to be excessive, slight though it be when compared with the growth of even smaller deltas, such as those of the Rhine and Po. The charts prepared by the French expedition at the end of the last century, and by M. Larousse in 1860, after the completion of the preliminary w -rks for the Suez Canal, give a yearly increase of 130 feet for the Bosetta and 40 for the Damietta mouth. But these are merely local clanges, and with the displacement of the channels the fflB ^ yi W l'P **«P»^^ THE NILE DEI-TA. 07 is little ious the ough to efuge to h slower brought «i !i?5 Iculatedby ig on this growth prepared jarousse in Inal, give a luth. But Einnels the accumulatml alluvia are soon swept away and diBtributod along the coant by the miirinu currents. In many placcH tlioso cncroiiohmentH of the sou havo boon clearly determined. A distinctly perceptible coast streora sets steadily from Alexandria eastwards to Port Said, here and there developing slight local counter currents, such as the ebb and flow between the Rosetta mouth and Abukir I'oint. The effect of this stream is to ennlo the headlandn and fill in the intervening inlets, thus restoring the original paralwlic curve of the coast. Wherever an obstacle is met, it becomes attached to the mainland by a semicircular strip of sand. Shoals have thus been accumulated at the western pier of Port Said, although not in BuiBcient quantity to endanger the basins of the new port, especially as they may be easily reduced or removed by dredging. Altogether the annual growth of the delta cannot be estimated at more than H or 9 feet, so that since the time of Herodotus the mainland has encroached o he sea probably not much more than 3^ miles. There may even be a complete equilibrium between the fluvial deposits and the erosions of the marine currents. At least the geological aspect of the coast is that of an ancient seaboard forming a continuation of the small limestone ridge at Alexandria, which at present terminates at Abukir Point. In the shallow waters the waves take advantage of every rocky projection, islet, or headland to deposit sandbanks, and thus gradually transform the irregidar marine inlets into landlocked lagoons. Before advancing beyond the mainland the Nile had to fill up these lagoons, separated by strips of sand from the Mediterranean, and this work is not yet accomplished. It would appear to have even been delayed by a general subsidence of the laud, such as has been recorded in Holland, on the coast of North Germany, at the mouth of the Po, in the Amazon estuary, and in so many other alluvial districts. Thus the artificial caves formerly excavated near Alexandria at a certain elevation above sea- level are now submerged. These are the tombs known by the name of " Cleopatra's Baths."* To the same phenomenon should perhaps be attributed the restoration of certain depressions, which after having long remained dry have again been partly flooded. But however this be, the lacustrine basins of the delta are now so shallow that they might easily be filled up. The eastern extremity of Lake Menzaleh, which is separated from the Nile basin by the embankments of the Suez Canal, has already become dry land, while the old bed of the Pelusium branch has disappeared. Since Andreossy's survey at the end of the last century, Menzaleh itself has been much reduced, and has now a mean depth of scarcely 40 inches, although covering a superficial area of about 500 square miles during the floods, when it communicates by temporary channels both with the Nile and the sea. At low water it is so beset with shoals and islets that most of the navigation is suspended. Lake Buries, which lies east of the Rosetta branch in the northern part of the delta, is scarcely less extensive than Menzaleh, and like it rises and falls with the periodical floods. A sweet- water basin when fed by the Nile, it becomes brackish at other times, and communicates through a single periuanent opening with the • Sir Ch. I yell, " Antiquity of Man." i 3 68 NOUTll-lUHT AFRICA. fioa. Luko Mariut, oloso to Alvxundriii, Iiiih u (iircutnforonoo of nt loaat 00 miloii, unil tho HttM^p cIjITh towunln the nuuth and wohI givo it tho uapuct of ti truct luko. Yet it was cotnplutoly dry in 179U, whoii tho Kn^^liHh out tho ombankinont Noparating it from tho nou. Since then it is onoo more ' . .., If it is di£Scult to estimate the encroachments of the Nile delta on the sea and the surrounding lakes, an equally intricate problem is presented by the gradual upheaval of tho whole region subject to the annual inundations, for here account must also be taken of the sands brought by the wind, as well as of the sediment deposited by the stream. From the comparative observations made during the French expedition, Girard calculated that by the Nile alluvia f >e soil was raised on an average about 5 inches in a century. Hence, notwithstanding its slight encroachments seawards, the level of the delta would have been raised about 20 feet during the last five thousand years, that is, since the Egyptians had already 00 miles, trun lukn. jiiiikinunt 10 breach Irainnd it wan then # I 10' y :5I' :h or partly aples and le sea and B gradual e account sediment uring the i^as raised its slight about 20 id already ' f^^fiZ r ,.^„.. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WtST MAIN STMiT WEBSTER, N.Y. 14SS0 (716) 872-4503 CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHM/ICIVIH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Institute for Historical MIcroreproductlons / Instltut Canadian da microraproductions historlquas ■■:'}\^i--r^'^im:?^^<-'?t,i .- , ■ -j ■- :-v'^i.^'':rs^vM^';.;^;;vfr^g ^ ■m>ii*ppj i i I I . I I ■. .s • .■(;.,.' VOLUME AND PERIODICAL EI8ING OF THE NILE. 69 begun their great works of canalisation. Doubtless most of the monuments erected near the river, such as the slabs of stone paving the great avenue of sphinxes at Kamak, che colossal statues of Memnon, and even a block bearing a comparatively recent Greek inscription, are now found buried to some depth below the surface. But this is due not so much to change of level as to subsidence, such huge masses naturally sinking gradually in the alluvial soil of the riverain plains. In the same ay the erratic boulders in Switzerland and the colonnades of the Roman temples have sunk more and more below the surrounding surface. The Nilometer discovered by Girard in Elephantine Island is perhaps one of those monuments whose foundations have thus given way. Hence although the present high-water mark may exceed the old measurement by 8 or 9 feet, it does not follow that the bed of the river and its banks have been raised to that extent. Such a phenomenon could not be reconciled with the drying up of the old bed east of Asuan, which has now been abandoned by the stream. . !i ' I Volume and Periodical Risino of the Nile. The yearly overflow of the Nile, which renews all nature, and which was celebrated by the Egyptians as the resurrection of a god, is of such regular occurrence that it was formerly compared with the revolutions of the heavenly orbs. How could the riverain populations refrain from worshipping this stream, " Creator of wheat and giver of barley," a stream but for which " the gods would fall prostrate and all men perish " P " Hail, Nile ! " sang the priests of old, " Hail, thou that comest to give life to Egypt ! " According to its periodical return all things were and still are regulated — field operations, town work, civil and religious feasts. But. at present it is easier to prepare for the rising waters, which are annouroed from Khartum thirty or forty days beforehand. They begin to appear nearly always on June 10th, at first " green " with vegetable refuse from the great lagoons of the upper basin. But the rise is very slight till about the middle of July, when the stream becomes suddenly swollen by the "red" waters from the Abyssinian highlands. Towards the end of August the Nile is nearly full, but continues to increase slightly till October 7th, when it usually reaches its culminating point. After this date the subsidence sets in and continues very gradually till the return of the floods the following June. During the three months of high water the Nile sends seawards a liquid mass equal to about three-fourths of the whole annual discharge, or 3,150 billions cubic feet out of a total of 4,200 billions. High-water mark naturally diminishes down stream, falling from about 56 feet at Asuan to 24 or 25 at Cairo. Relying on some of the old texts, especially a much-disputed passage in Herodotus, some writers suppose that the level of the floods has been considerably modified since the first centuries of Egyptian history, although sufficient data are lacking to determine the point with certainty. In any case the mean elevation has under- gone no change since the end of the eighteenth century of the new era. The careful measurements taken at that time have since been maintained, and they are 70 NORTH-EAST AFEICA. found to coincide with those published by the naturalists of the French expedition, and with the uninterrupted series of modern observations. At the same time the fioods oscillate within certain extreme limits. Sometimes there is insufficient water to supply all the canals, while in other years the overflow is excessive, and on these occasions the land does not dry soon enough to insure good harvests. The rate of the land-tax generally varies according to the height and volume of the river. Hence the public crier appointed to proclaim the state of the Fig. 26. — Ybarly OsciLLATioiia or ihb Nim. Jan. Feb March Apnl May June July Auq Sept. Oct.' Nov. Deo. • inundations has often been compelled by the Government to make false reports on this point. The day when the Nile reaches the proper level for cutting the dykes separating it from the irrigation canals Is a day of rejoicing for all the riverain populations. Formerly a young maiden was on this occasion borne with great pomp to the river and cast into the seething waters, in order to obtain abundant crops from the local divinity. Now her place is taken by a dressed-up doll, which is still offered by the public executioner, a curious reminiscence of former human sacrifices. *. at-t. u h'. w fti|irtiH -•■ -—..-., ■iiiWii ii I xpedition, time the Dsufficient tssive, and eats. ad volume te of the M ^>- Hii. reports on the dykes le riverain with great 1 abundant doll, which ner human VOLUME AND PEBIODICAL BISINO OF THE NILE. 71 The two zones of alluvial land skirting the Nile are intersected by numerous irrigation canals, which distribute the fecundating waters far and wide. Like those of *her streams flowing through alluvial plains, the banks of the river are higher than the surrounding country. A cutting running transversely to the direction of the valley would show that from cliff to clii! the plain presents the form of a convex curve, so that at high water the stream occupies the most elevated level between the ranges of hills bordering both sides of its valley. From this central elevation the surface of the current inclines right and left, and the slope is continued in both directions across the riverain plains. This disposition of the ground is due to the greater quantity of sedimentary matter deposited along the bonks of the stream. The waters have thus a double incline, that is, according to the general direction of the river valley, and according to the lateral slope of its banks. If they met with no obstacle in the irrigating canals, they would flow at once to the lowest level on either side, and convert the whole depression into a vast lake. Hence they have to be retained at the higher elevation- by means of a transverse dyke, which is opened only when the upper levels have been sufficiently submerged. The overflow is then arrested in a second section also confined by embankment works, and in this way the water is distributed to every part of the surrounding plains by a system of canals disposed at successive levels. Nevertheless the normal incline of the land has in many places been modified by the local alluvial deposits, and by the action of opposing currents in the lateral channels. The shifting sands brought by the winds from the neighbouring escarpments have also here and there raised the low-lying, plains to a level with, and even higher than, the banks of the Nile, thus obliging the cultivators to changpe the whole plan of their irrigation works. Formerly, when the Nile was inhabited by five different species of the crocodile, the rising flood was preceded and heralded by the suk, a small and harmless variety, which was accordingly welcomed with much ceremony by the villagers, and even honoured with divine worship in many towns far removed from the Nile. Temples were dedicated to them, where they were kept alive, decked with armlets and pendants, and fed on the flesh of victims. But none of these saurians are now seen in the Egyptian Nile, even as high up as Thebes, although the canals intersecting Cairo were still infested by them at the beginning of the present century. None appear to be met below Ombos, south of Asuan, and this region of the cataracts is also inhabited by electric fish. But the hippopotamus has retreated still higher up to the neighbourhood of the Atbara confluence. When the flood begins to subside, the water in the higher canals would at once flow back to the main stream were it not retained by sluices, and thus stored to meet the reqiiirements of the following spring and summer. During the sub- sidence the level of the overflow is still maintained in the plains some 18 or 20 feet above the bed of the main stream. The peasantry also utilise the waters which filtrate laterally into the ground to a distance of some miles, but so slowly that the effect of the inundations is not felt for weeks and even months after the normal period of the rising. Even within 300 or 400 feet of the Nile the water in r h mud of the Nile is the only manure required for the crops. In the sun it becomes solid and may be cut into bricks or vessels ; under the foot it is hard as stone, and in shrinking develops deep lissuroH in the ground. The old sandy or calcareous deposits, mingled at the foot of the hills with the rolled shingle wushiKl down by floods anterior to the present geological (^]H)ch, are covered with a layer from 35 to 40 feet thick, forming an extremely rich arable soil which, if removed elsewhere, might suffice to fertilise a region u hundred times more extensive. In its chemical composition this Nile mud, from which Egypt has been created, differs from that of all European rivers. Its analysis yields the most varied results according to its age, locality, and distance from the river. But it always contains a considerable proportion of carbonates of lime and magnesia, of oxide of iron and carbon, derived from decomposed organic substances. Palatable as it is, the Nile water nevertheless contains the refuse of all the provinces in its vast basin — the slime of the Atbara, animal remains from the Bahr-<'!-Azraq lagoona, sedg^ and other vegetable debris from the Kir and Gazelle rivers. Between the sands, argil* laceous clays, and nigged crags of both deserts there thus intervenes a narrow belt of verdure created by the miscellaneous sedimentary matter in the course of ages washed down from half the continent.* * Analyais of the Nile mud in Egypt, by Regnault, " Deacrlption of Egypt," vol. zz. Water . i ' • • . 11 percent. Carbon 9 „ „ Oxides 6 I, ,1 Silica * 1. I. Carlionate of Magneaia Carbonate of Lime . Alumina . 4 per cent. 18 II 11 48 ., ,, '•,-)l-^-\:, ,i ^^" m \fvn! ill ■ ^«iHi^»^aM*«^«Vaf|a CHAPTER in. REGION OP THE GREAT LAKES. TIE basin of the Victoria Xyanza, including that of the Upper Nile as far as its passage across the Albert Nyauza (MVutan Nzigoh), comprises a superficial area which may be estimated at some 170,000 square miles, although this estimate cannot claim to be more than a very rough approximation to the reality. Pending a more exact knowledge of the parting lines between the great river basins, we must be satisfied with rude calculations according to the spaces enclosed in the meshes of the intersecting lines of latitude and longitude. This vast region, which has a mean altitude of over 4,000 feet, forms part of the great continental divide. The waters it sends down to the Egyptian river bring it within the Mediterranean basin ; but it approaches far nearer to the Atlantic seaboard, while its southern extremity lies within 240 miles of the Indian Ocean. As regards its facilities of communication with the outer world, the Victoria Nyanza naturally gravitates towards the social and commercial system of which Zanzibar is the centre. Even after the water highway of the Nile is again opened, and intestine warfare has ceased to harass the riverain communities, European explorers will find it most convenient still to take the route, ascending from the Indian Ocean to the plateaux, which has ever been followed by the Arab traders. Although forming the water-parting betweeti the Mediterranean, Indian, and Atlantic basins, the Nyanza region is far less elevated than some other parts of the continent. E^xcept towards the sources of the Tangure, where Mfumbiro rises to a height of probably 10,000 feet, and farther north, where the still loftier Gam- baragara stretches parallel with the meridian, the plateau nowhere develops elevated highlands. The plains are broken only by hills and ridges rising a few hundred yards above the normal level, and presenting no insurmountable obstacles to the exploration of the interior. Amongst these Upper Nilotic lands those especially bordering the northern and western shores of Nyanza are almost unrivalled in Africa, and scarcely elsewhere surpassed, for the charm and variety of their scenery, their abundant waters, exuberant vegetation, and fertile soil. The inhabitants of U-Nyamezi, south of the lake, are less favoured in these respects. Here hill and CM M ATK— FliORA- FAUNA. 7S duio ultorniito with tho platouux ; but during thr riiiny m«u«ori tlio land In niis:;^^,'i^^^ But however beautiful the flora of the upland plateaux, it does not appear to be distinguished by great variety. Of the seven hundred and iif ty species collected by Grant between Zanzibar and the lower Nile, eighty, or at most a hundred, were new to botanists. The floras of the Cape, of Abyssinia and the Nile are intermingled on these uplands, where even some Indian species occur, and to these have recently been added a number of European plants which here find a congenial home. Grant thinks that Earagw^ especially would be admirably suited for the cidtivation of the tea plant. The giant of these forests is the mpaffu, which distils an aromatic gum from its enormous trunk 24 to 26 feet in g^rth. Like the flora, the fauna of the plateaux is distinguished from that of the sur- rounding regions by but few indigenous species. The lake is inhabited, like the Nile and the Niger, by hippopotami and crocodiles, while multitudes of aquatic fowl swarm in the sedge or perch on the branches of the trees fringing its shores. From the cultivated tracts most wild beasts have been scared, although the neigh- bouring thickets are still infested by the much-dreaded panther. Hytenas also prowl about the villages ; the wayfarer is often startled by the ill-omened yelp of the fox ; small game is hunted by the wild cat and other allied species ; squirrels spring from branch to branch of the forest trees, above which hover g^yish parrots noted for their large size and shrill voice ; lower down the flowery mead is alive with all the brilliant world of smaller birds and butterflies. The wilder districts of U-Sui on the Earagw^ frontier and of North U-Ganda, where forest trees and cereals are replaced by the wild palm and ferns, are inhabited by numerous species of tb,9 antelope, by the rhinoceros, elephant, and zebra. Here also the swampy lands are peopled by the buffalo, while the wild boar finds a lair in the dense brushwood. Several varieties of monkeys enliven the forests of the tableland, amongst them the colubus guereza, noted for its rich white and black hair, and possibly also the chimpanzee.* The lion is very rare on the equatorial uplands, although his tremendous roar is occasionally heard, striking terror into the other denizens of the iorest. Ostriches sweep over the open plains; guinea-fowl in countless numbers find a shelter in the bush, and the victims of the battlefield or the executioner are removed by a small species of vulture, the scavenger of so many tropical lands. Inhabitants. — The Bantus. Certain parts of the Upper Nile region are amongst the most densely peopled lands in Africa. The descriptions of Speke and Grant, of Stanley, Long, De Linant, and Gessi, as well as the partial estimates of the missionaries, are all unanimous on this point. According to these witnesses, some ten or twelve millions of souls are • Emin-Bey, Petermann'a " Mittheilungen," 1881. [ interlaced tks winding to the solar t appear to es collected idred, were itermingled ive recently [ue. Grant dtivation of m aromatic of the sur- ged, like the of aquatic I its shores. the neigh- [ysenas also tnened yelp i; squirrels |rish parrots ead is alive 1 U-Ganda, re inhabited ibra. Here finds a lair rests of the black hair, ial uplands, the other lea-fowl in ittlefield or of so many iopled lands Linant, and lous on this f souls are THE WA-8UKUMA AND WA-ZINZA. 77 concentrated in the districts bordering on the great lakes, which are drained by the headstreams of the Nile. In speech, and probably also in origin, the tribes and nations of the plateau are allied to the peoples of South Africa, whose ethnological domain encroaches at this point some 600 miles on the northern basin. All the lacustrine communities belong to this Bantu stock, which is so remarkable for its harmonious and pliant speech. East of the Victoria Nyanza, however, there appear to dwell certain tribes speaking idioms akin to that of the Kordof an Nubas ; at least, it is certain that the Masai and the Wa-Kwafi, whose language is not of Bantu origin, have some settlements in the neighbourhood of the lake. Amongst these lacustrine tribes there are some that have not yet been visited by European explorers. Pending more positive information, which cannot be much longer delayed, all these tribes have been provisionally classed with the Bantu family. The Wa Stjkuma and Wa-Zinza. A section of the Wa-Nyamezi group of tribes has occupied the hilly district stretching south of the Speke Gulf, the largest inlet of Lake Nyanza. But uo large state has been developed in this region, which is watered by the Simeyu and other streams flowing to the g^ulf . The inhabitants, collectively known as Wa-Sukuma, are divided into a large number of small communities of Bantu origin, but greatly modified by mixture with slaves from all quarters, and frequently displaced to escape the attacks of the rnga-ruga, or marauders. Most of these Wa-Sukuma tribes, although banded together in a sort of confederation, are distinguished from each other by their systems of tattooing and by the way the front teeth are filed down. Their chief ornament consists of iron wire wound round the arms, legs, and neck, rendering quick action very difficult. Both sexes also attach little bells to their legs, the tinkling of which acts as an accompaniment to their conversation. The t:\hal chiefs enjoy theoretically very little power, and are required on all im- portant occasions to consult the elders, the real depositaries of the national usages and traditions. Nevertheless the personal . wealth acquired . by these kinglets, constituting them the great proprietors of the country, often enables them to pipy the part of irresponsible despots. When the villagers brew their pombd or native beer, the king drinks and gets drunk at pleasure ; when the hunters slay an ele- phant he claims the best " joints," and appropriates the tusks ; all the skins of lions, leopards, and zebras in the same way fall to his share. The itinerant dealer must show his wares to the king, who imposes a road-tax, fixed according to his caprice. Lastly, the tribal chief inherits the property of all his subjects who suffer capital punishment on the charge of sorcery. Although the women generally speaking enjoy very little respect, the populous village of Wama is governed by a queen. The magicians command great influence, and whenever any of their prophecies happen to come true, or their miracles prove successful, they dispose of the unlimited authority usually accorded to infallibility. Their " divining wand " is a cow's or antelope's horn, which when filled with a I s? IJilUi ni*?-SE5*Sf«»'flr- 78 NORTH-EAST APMOA. magic powder and planted in the ground before a village, suffices to ward off the enemy. However, resort must often be had to charms of greater potency. When a battle is pending the wizard flays a child, placing the bleeding victim on the "war path," to be trampled by the warriors marching to victory. But a great blow was jiven to the power of the magicians by the arrival of the European missionaries, for they also are regarded as " medicine-men," and their potions are held to be more efficacious than those of the natives. A rain-gauge placed by them near a station on the shore of Lake Victoria had to be removed, in order not to destroy the spells concocted by the wizards to bring down rain. The Sukuma country enjoys a certain commercial advantage, due to its position Pig. 27.— U-Kbbbwi and U-Suxvma. Soale 1 : 1,600,000. ^V" »aut,f SOUilM. on the route of the slave-dealers between F-Nyamezi and IJ-Ganda. Since the days of Speke and Stanley it has been visited by several Europeans. The most populous district is U-Rima, near the " Jordans' Mullah " of Speke, and the most frequented port is the village of Kagheyi (Eagei) on the left side of the lake, where was launched Stanley's Ladif Alice, followed soon after by the Daisy and the Eleanor. The view towards the lake is interrupted by the hills of U-Kerewe, a large island whose name has often been applied to the great inland sea itself. F-Kerewe, which is almost entirely covered with forests, forms a separate state, whose capital, Bakindo, lies near the east sid? on a creek well sheltered by islets from the winds. A palisade of the tnmks of trees in the centre of the town encloses the royal hut, those of the king's wives, the granaries, and the shed where are deposited the ^ rd off the . When m on the it a g^eat European otions are placed by order not A position 401 Since the The most the most ike, where e Eleanor. rge island we, which , Bakindo, rinds. A the royal losited the THE WA-nUMA. 79 war drums. Beyond the first enclosure is the court of justice, where the king, seated on a throne decorated with teeth, talons, and horns, settles the disputes of his subjects. A second palisade, less substantial than that of the royal palace, encircles the whole village, with its huts, winding lanes, and cultivated fields, where are cultivated tobacco, cereals, and various vegetables introduced by the Arabs. The south-east side of Lake Victoria is bordered by the IJ-Zinza (U-Zinja) country lying west of the Isanga River, which flows to a narrow fiord penetrating over 30 miles inland. This little-known region has been visited by Europeans only on its southern slope, which drains to Lake Tanganyka. Like the Wa-Sukuma, the Wa> Zinza are divided into several communities governed by chiefs and their wizards. They live in constant dread of the marauding Wa-Tuta tribe, who are said to be southern Bantus, perhaps Zulus penetrating from Lake Nyassa through the Tanganyka basin northwards, plundering and massacring along the route, like a horde of wild beasts. The Wa-Zinza of the hilly sandstone districts in the north, who have less to fear from hostile inroads, are a finer and more vigorous race than those of the lowlands. They wear a skirt of tanned ox-hide, deck themselves with necklaces and amulets, and lard their bodies with rancid butter. Of all the Wa- Zinza tribes, the Wa-Sui branch is the most powerful. ' ] The Wa-Huma. In these regions the chief power belongs to families of the Wa-Huma, a race of pastors which is represented by one or more communities on all the upland plateaux round about Lake Victoria. According to Speke and Grant, these Wa- Huma are conquerors of Galla stock, originally from the Ethiopian highlands. In U-Nyamezi, and as far as the seventh degree of south latitude, kindred tribes are found, here known as Wa-Tusi, who closely resemble the Wa-Huma in speech and usapes They are distinguished from their agricultural neighbours by a loftier figure and more regular features, oval face, straight and well-chiselled nose, and small mouth, without the pouting lips characteristic of the true. Negro. The Wa- Huma women best represent this fine Ethiopian type ; hence they are readily pur- chased by the chiefs of other races for their harems. But while all the surrounding peoples become gradually modified by these crossings, the Wa-Huma preserve their original purity, keeping aloof from all contact with the aborigines. They are nearly all stock-breeders, and as they mostly live in the jungle, far from villages, they are seldom met by travellers. Although they have given kings to most of the upland tribes, they are nevertheless regarded as barbarians by the Negro cultivators, just as in the " Middle Kingdom" the Manchu conquerors are despised by their Chinese subjects. But in the midst of all th^se enslaved communities, who vaimt their industrial arts and agricultural pursuits, the Wa-Huma have at least the superiority acquired from a free and independent life. They tolerate no masters, and those amongst them who have failed to defend their liberties are no longer re- g^arded as belonging to their nation. Speke even tells us that captured and enslaved I 80 NOETH-EAST APEIOA. Wa-Huma women are burnt alive whenever they again fall into the hands of their fellow-countrymen. The language of the "Wa-Huma is unknown, and it is still uncertain whether they speak a Galla dialect mixed with Bantu words or a Bantu idiom affected by Galla elements. , > The Kingdom of Earagw^. The kingdom of Karagw^ occupies west of Lake Victoria an area of about 6,000 square miles, being limited southwards by TJ-Zinza, west and north by the Tangur^ . : -- Pig. 28.— Karaow*. 8«aa 1 : MOOOOO. . » .8oua«. river, which seems to have the best claim to be regarded as the Upper Nile. From TJ-Sui this state is separated by a desert borderland watered by the Lohugati, which flows north-east to Lake Nyanza. Earagw^ is one of the finest countries in Central Africa. With its evergreen hills, fertile valleys, and purling brooks, the whole region presents a park-like appearance, and might easily be transformed to a vast garden. The western district is tolerably elevated, the crests of the plateau here attaining a height of 6,000 and even 6,000 feet, and in clear weather commanding a view of the blue > mAfmimM mmmm THE KINGDOM OF KARAGWE. 81 Mfumbiro peaks, and of other distant summits, named by Speke the " Mountains of liio Moon." On the Earagwd uplands the air is so cool that the natives of Zanzi- bar fancy that they must be in the neighbourhood of England, the only cold country known to them by repute. In some of the depressions lakes have been formed, amongst others the lovely Raveru (4,300 feet), which to Speke and Grant seemed beautiful enough to merit the title of i -e African " "Windermere." But although encircled by grassy slopes rising 1,500 or 1,600 feet above its waters, it is not an Alpine lake, its depth nowhere exceeding 45 or 46 feet. The Urigi, another basin near the southern frontier, is merely a large pond, discharging its overflow north- wards to the Tangur^. According to the natives the whole valley was, even in recent times, still under water. Boats were able to ascend from Nyanza to Urigi, and the little dome- shaped hillocks dotted over the plain were then rocky islets. These hills consist of argillaceous sandstones of a bright red colour, interspersed with large masses of white quartz. The decomposition of the sandstones, the prevailing formation throughout the whole region, supplies the fertile red soil on which such bountiful crops are raised. At the head of a shady valley in the north-west spring the six thermal streams of M'tagata, which have a temperature of 130° Fahr. They are resorted to by all the surrounding populations, who have much faith in their curative properties. Except in some districts, such as that of the capital, near Windermere, Earagw^ is rather thinly peopled. The majority of the inhabitants belong to the Wa- Nyambo stock, and speak the Zongora, a Bantu dialect. But here also the chief power has been usurped by the Wa-Huma, whose daughters are not permitted to contract alliances with Negroes of lower castes. The lives of the Wa-Huma are held to be sacred ; hence they are absolutely exempt from capital punishment, all crimes, murder not excepted, being punished by fines alone. We know that in many parts of Africa the women are systematically fattened, to such an extent as to be no longer able to stand up. This ^cessive obesity is regarded as a supreme virtue, doubtless because it proves the wealth of people who can thus afford to nourish their wives and exempt them from manual labour. For an analogous reason many Karagw4 chiefs allow their nails to g^w, like the Annamese mandarins, to show that they have no need of their hands, slaves working and toiling for them. On certain occasions human sacrifices are also still practised. At the death of the sovereign a " mortuary chapel " is built over the body, into which are thrown five girls and fifty cows, destined to accompany their master on his long journey to iq>irit-land. Warahatyi, capital of Karagw^, is pleasantly situated, over 4,300 feet above the sea, on a grassy terrace overlooking Lake Windermere, and commanding a view of a steep hill, on which stands the royal necropolis. Farther on winds the valley of the Alexandra Nile, a vast forest of papyrus bounded on the distant horizon by the triple-crested Mfumbiro. At the eastern foot of an intervening cone the Arab traders have established the station of Kufro (Eafuro), where woven goods, salt, and European wares are bartered for ivory, coffee, and other native produce. In this district elephants have already beg^ to disappear, although a huge species of 6 — AF. N0ETH-EA8T AFEICA. white or greyish rhinoceros still abounds. "West and north of Karagw4 the large mammals have not yet been disturbed either by Europeans or Arabs, th^ae some- what inaccessible regions having hitherto remained unvisited by explorers. M The Ruanda Country. Ruanda, lying directly west of the Tangur^ river, and stretching away as far as the northern slope of Lake Tanganyka, is probably the most powerful state in this still unexplored region. According to the statements of the Aribs, who have vainly endeavoured to penetrate into the country, whence they would be promptly expelled, because " famine and drought follow in their train," here are some very large villages, and the land is said to abound in minerals and hot springs. South of Moimt Mfumbiro all the slopes seem to be covered by an immense forest of use- ful timbers. Northwards M'poro and U-Sagara, also called Ankori or Mkol^, are also said to be rich in valuable products. Most extraordinary things are related of this mysterious country, wicked dwarfs, far more formidable than giants, taking a prominent part in all these reports. It is probable that a race of piggies, like the Akka of the forests of the river Welle, and the Obongo of the Ogoway basin, occupy the upland valleys of Mount M'fumbiro and the ranges running northwards towards Mounts Kibanga and Gambaragara. Stanley states that the king of U-Gauda sent an expedition against these dwarfs, but the cold seems to have prevented his soldiers from penetrating into the upland valleys. Here also the chief power appears to be in the hands of the Wa-Huma, these conquerors from the east having thus appa- rently reached the water-parting between the Nile and Congo basins. This still unexplored country will doubtless sooner or later occupy a position in the history of the continent analogous to that which it already holds in its geographical aspect. Thanks to its climate and productions, it may become a new Europe in the very heart of Africa, and here will be the principal health-resort of the Nile and Congo lowland rugions. The Empire op F-Ganda. The kingdom of U-Ganda,* the best known of all the states on the plateau of the Nile basin, seems to be also the most populous, as it certainly is the most power- ful. Its form is that of a crescent, stretching west and north of the Nyanza, and comprising Koki, IJ-Du (Uddu), and other states, as far as the mouth of the Alexandra Nile. Eastwards it extends even beyond the Somerset Nile, having gradually absorbed the TJ-Soga country. It also possesses the large Sesse Archi- pelago, besides several other islands. In the interior its still undefined limits are lost in dense uninhabited jungles, and quite recently it has claimed sovereignty over Karagwe and U-Sui. Its total area may be estimated at 20,000 square miles, and, including the dependencies, at about 70,000 square miles. Stanley's calcula- tions, based on the number of armed men, make the population about 2,775,000. * U-Ganda ineans country of Oiinda ; M-Oanda, man ot Oanda ; Wa-Ganda, people of Gkmda ; Ki- Ganda, language of Qanda. '' ■'■ -"-WiMflwfmfli l|» UW)W I IWWI*0HM l HI > M B9»e.. ttlnmsi'-nrrmiKrlpr HAIUTS AND CUSTOMS OF THE WA-GANDA. he large te some* as far as te in this rho have promptly lome very 9. South ist of uae- Ikol^, are related of , taking a 9, like the in, occupy is towards }anda sent lis soldiers pears to be hus appa- This still ;he history Lcal aspect. In the very and Congo > plateau of lost power- yanza, and luth of the ile, having esse Arohi- i limits are sovereignty ^uare miles, )y's calcula- ; 2,776,000. o{ Qanda; Ki- But according to the English missionaries it really amounts to 5,000,000, that is to say, nearly 200 persons por mile, a density almost one-fourth more than that of France. However, a still more remarkable statement of Messrs. Felkin and Wilson throws some doubt upon the value of these provisional estimates. According to them, the women are three and a-half times more numerous than the men, a social phenomenon elsewhere without parallel. Hitherto all the regular statistics have shown that the sexes are nearly equal, either with a slight overplus for the women, as in all the countries of Europe and the New World, or with a small excess for the men, as in Japan. English travellers seem to think that this extraordinary dispro- portion may be due at once to natural and political causes. The births of girls far exceeds those of boys, as is evident from the groups of children playing before the huts, the dangers of the battlefield and the massacres of the captives accounting for the rest. On their successful expeditions the Wa-Ganda warriors, h'ke their neigh- bours, kill the men and carry o£E the women, who are afterwards divided amongst the conquerors. In U-Ganda, as in most of the other states of the plateau, the power belongs to the Wa-Huma nation, although the majority of the inhabitants are the Wa-Ganda, who have given their name to the state. They are true Negroes, with almost black complexion and short woolly hair, above the average height, and endowed with uncommon muscular strength. The women are distinguished by their small hands and feet. The Wa-Nyambo, who come from Earagw^ and the adjacent provinces, and who are for the most part pastors, are more slender in appearance than the natives. But the Wa-Soga, immigrants from the countries situated to the east of the Somerset Nile, equal the Wa-Ganda in stature and in strength, while they are even of a darker complexion. Amongst these various peoples albinos are very numerous ; nevertheless they are exhibited as curiosities in the huts of the chiefs. The practices of tattooing the face, distending the lobe of the ear, or filing the teeth to a point, common amongst other African tribes, are here unknown, all voluntary mutilation being forbidden under pain of death. Nor do the Wa-Ganda grease the body with fat, and they are in other respects of cleanly habits and given to frequent ablutions. The most dreaded disease is small-pox, probably imported from the eastern coast. It spares few persons when it presents itself in an epidemic form. A few scattered cases of leprosy are to be found here and there, persons frequently being seen with their black skins covered with white blotches, like those of the Mexican Pintados. Habits and Customs of the Wa-Ganda. The chief food of the Wa-Gandu is the banana, of which they possess several varieties, amongst others the Ethiopian mmae etiaete. It is prepared by them in various woys, being even mode into flour and a fermented liquor which they brew from it. Sweet potatoes, haricots, various kinds of gourds and tomatoes, maize, millet, papaw fruit, rice, and vegetables introduced by the Arabs, are amongst their alimentary plants. The coffee-shrub is also cultivated, but yields a very small M N0ETH-EA8T AFRICA. berry, of which the Wa-Ganda make no infusions, using them merely for chewing purposes. They rarely eat meat, as all the live stock, consisting of thin and bad milch cows, goats, and fat-tailed sheep, belong to the Huraa, who do not sell them. On the shores of the lake, and on the islands, the inhabitants, mostly ichthyophagous, find abundant nutriment in the multitude of fish abounding in the N'yanza. Nor do the Wa-Ganda despise smaller creatures, readily eating termites and locusts, and even chasing swarms of flies, which they capture by means of nets drawn quickly through the air. Owing to the cool atmosphere of these central plateaux the Wa-Ganda build their dwellings more carefully than most other tribes of the continent, and these huts are large enough to permit all domestic work being done within. They are nearly always of the beehive type, consisting of a double hemisphere or dome of branches supported by posts, and thickly thatched with straw of the so-called " tiger grass," some eighteen or twenty feet long. Between the two roofs the air circulates freely, keeping the interior of the cabin fresh and sweet. A sloping ledge of beaten earth round the outside carries off the rainwater during the wet season. Many of the houses have a low porch, under which they enter on all-fours. This, combined with the custom of prostrating themselves before superiors, is the cause of the pouch- like wrinkles that most of the natives have on their knees. Inside, the ground is strewn with bundles of grass disposed in geometrical figures, which produce a pleasing effect until the walls become blackened through the want of outlets for the smoke. Recently the Arabs and the Europeans have constructed other and larger houses, with gables and windows ; but the king has not permitted them to erect stone buildings, none having a right to inhabit a gander house than the king's palace. The national costume is also changing under the influence of foreigners introducing new fashions. Amongst the Central African tribes the Wa-Nyoro and Wa-Ganda alone clothe themselves from head to foot, pain of death even being the penalty for men or women leaving their houses too scantily attired. Till recently the national costume was the mbugu, a garment of bark stripped from a species of fig-tree (ficua ludia), and beaten to render it supple. Over the mbugu the chiefs wore a robe, either an ox-hide or made up of twenty or thirty skins of the little ntalaganya antelope, which is no larger than a hare, and whose brown fur is remarkably beautiful. But the Arab dress is gradually prevailing, even the poorer classes buying the hdik, the shirt, the girdle, and the caftan, while the chiefs deck themselves with rich turbans or with the Egyptian fez. Stockings and Turkish slippers are also replacing the coarse bu£Ealo-skin sandals. Their arms are also supplied from Zanzibar, and the Wa-Ganda warriors have already substituted modern rifles for the old-fashioned spears and bows. The Egyptian Government has in vain forbidden the exportation of small-arms to the Nyanza region, for these weapons continue to be imported from other sources. The practice of polygamy is far more general amongst the Wa-Ganda than amongst the Europeans and Asiatic Mohammedans, the chiefs having no limit to the number of their wives, who are also their servants. The late King M'tesa is HABITS AND CUSTOMS OF THE WA-GANDA. 86 jhowing ind bad ill them. phagouB, :a. Nor locuBta, I quickly da build heBe huts re nearly branches jr grass," bes freely, iten earth ny of the combined ;he pouch- ground is produce a outlets for other and d them to than the fluence of one clothe or men or al costume lcu9 ludia), , either an k antelope, tiful. But le hdik, the ch turbans lacing the ir, and the -fashioned :portatioh lortedfrom anda than no limit to M'tesa is said to have had no less than seven thousand, obtained in exchange for trifles such as some domestic animal, a few needles, or a box of pills. The chiefs follow their sovereign's example in suiTounding themselves with a host of wives, and the smallest vassal has bis harem. The grundees thus absorb such a large portion of the female population that, in spite of the preponderance of girls, there are not enough left for all the Wa-Ganda. Feasants are often seen whose scanty crops have never suiHced fb purchase a single wife. No law forbids the marrying of near relations. On the death of a father the eldest son even inherits all his wives, with the exception of his own mother, occasionally sharing them with the other members of the family. During the period of lactation, lasting two years, the women live apart from their husbands, the king and the chiefs having for these nurses separate houses scattered throughout the kingdom. Nearly all domestic work falls on the women and slaves, the free man being above any toil except that of building his own house. He is bom a soldier, and must keep his strength for the wielding of arms. The Wa-Ganda naturally have all the vices produced by such a state of things. They are liars, idlers, and thieves, those who have wives and slaves to do their work passing their time in gambling and drinking. The traveller is most struck by the disregard the Wa-Ganda have for human life. Eillir.g u man is a mere trifle that no one troubles himself about. A court-page wanting to try a rifle shoots the first passer-by, and returns delighted with his weapon and his skill. Another complains to the king of always serving, say- ing that he should like to be a chief. " Well then, kill your father ; " and the eon hastens to put this idea into execution, so as to inherit the women and slaves, which will enable him to fold his arms and do nothing in his turn. And yet the Wa-Ganda cannot be called a cruel people. They are rather inclined to benevolence, generally treating their slaves with g^reat gentleness, and welcoming the traveller with kindness. U-Ganda is said to be the only African country where the life of the guost has always been scrupulously respected. When a war breaks out all the strangers are enclosed in a village and placed under the charge of a chief respon- sible for their safety and bound to furnish them with food and shelter. But if they withdraw from the place assigned to them, the chief is no longer answerable for the consequences. Endowed with g^reat intelligence, and speaking an extremely sonorous, pliant, and logical language, the Wa-Ganda are probably the only African people who have made any real progress since 1862 when Speke, the first European visitor, penetrated into their country. Wa-Ganda envoys were already despatched to England in 1880. New plants have been introduced, together with new methods of culture, and agricultural labour is increasing. Very skilful in forging iron, the Wa-Ganda imitate perfectly European objects, and can even change flint-lock guns into modem rifles. They readily acquire foreign languages, and Swaheli, the idiom of the coast, and the most useful in Eastern Africa, is already spoken fluently in the capital and the market- towns. A certain number of chiefs also speak and write Arabic. In a few days school-children master the difliculties of the Latin alphabet, made much easier by the English missionaries than that of the 86 NOUTH KAHT AFRICA. Arabic language, in which the sound so rurely corresponds to the symbol. The Gandu alphabet is composed of Latin letters, x and q, however, being replaced by other characters. .1 Religion — Tradk — Administkation. Hitherto foreign religions have soorcely hod access to this country. Islam, which is making so much prog^ss north and south of the plateau, seemed destined to prevail in U-Oanda ; but the proctice of circumcision, which nearly all Mussul- mans have to undergo, except perhaps in Senoar and the Blue Nile, infringes the laws of the country, which, though permitting murdei-, forbids uU mutilations. A hundred young men who hod been circumcised were burnt by order of the king. Still, foreign Mohammedans have been allowed to build a mosque. The Catholic I ,■''-' ■■ ■'.:■-''. ,:,' **' ■ '■'■■[ y. ,,/ '■' Fig. 29.— South U-Oanda. ./ '^ . ;; SmO* 1 : 8,400,000. .10 Miles. and Protestant missionaries have made but few converts, although they both hoped to be able to strike a great blow by converting the king, baptised in anticipation as " Constantine the Black." For the rest, the Wa-Ganda have neither idols nor fetish gods, properly so-called ; they believe in a universal creator, Katonda, whom, how- ever, they do not worship, believing him too far above them to condescend to listen to their prayers. Hence they confine themselves to invoking the lubari, either well- disposed genii or dreaded demons, dwelling in the lakes, rivers, trees, and the rocks of the mountains. Mukusa, the god of the Nyanza, becomes occasionally incarnate in a wizard or a witch, announcing through this medium rain or drought, peace or war, triumphs ur disasters. Another dreaded god, he who lets loose the scourge of small-pox, seems to be the spirit of an ancient king, dwelling on the west of Mount Gambaragara above the region of the clouds. All the kings have their apotheosis, and after becoming demi-gods continue to govern the people, massacring or par- ■' ■^'iJ!''- BELIOION— TRADE— ADMINISTRATION. ml. The }luced by Islam, 1 destined [I Mussul- ■ingos the ktions. A the king. B Catholic 1 ,0' syso] 0* both hoped ticipation as )l8 nor fetish whom, how- end to listen either well- nd the rocks lly incarnate ;ht, peace or le scourge of est of Mount ir apotheosis, ring or par- doning as they did before their death. Amongst the most venerated is the god of thunder, und the place whore lightning is scon to strike is held as sucrod. Here an archway is built, under whiuh no stranger has the right to pass ; or else u hut is raised on the spot as a sort of temple, which, however, must not be repaired when it falls in ruins. Against all the dangers which surround him, proceeding from the evil genii and powers of the air, the Ounda man protects himself by amulets of wood, stone, or horn, and by shreds of cloth made for him by the maiuiica, or " medicine-men." These magicians appear also to have a sort of recognised influence, due to their skilful treatment of diseases with roots and nostrums. According to Speke, an ecclesiastical fief, over which the king of U-Qanda has only an indirect power, occupies a largo tract on the left bank of the Nile. In U-Qanda all the trade of any importance is in the hands of the Arabs and the Zanzibar half-castes. Their trading stations are limited on the north by the Somerset Nile, and the series of cataracts from Karuma to the Murchison Falls, and if they penetrate westwards towards the Albert Nyanza they still keep their depots in U-Ganda. They barter guns, powder and shot, woven goods, glassware, and a few European articles, for ivory and slaves, the latter the g^at staple of trade in Central Africa. At least one thousand blacks are thus sold annually to the Arabs. As the elephants retire before the hunter deeper and deeper into jungles remote from all human dwellings, the Wa-Ganda have no other means of paying their debts than by annually handing over an ever-increasing number of slaves to the dealers in human flesh. It has already been ascertained that the slave element is actually diminishing in the country. Ivory comes chiefly from U-Soga, and salt is imported from the banks of the Albert Nyanza across U-Nyoro. Till recently a little trade was also carried on with the Egyptian possessions in Sudan, to which TJ-Ganda supplied coffee, tobacco, and cattle, in exchange for cotton-stuffs, iron, and Turkish slippers. Money is still rarely employed in these transactions, the recog- nised commercial currency being the doti, or " eight cubits " of calico of ^yhe value of one thousand cowries. Thanks to the numerous caravans journeying between the sea and the lake, by the easy routes of the Masai country, the facilities for exchange are increasing. Hence there can be no doubt that a civilised system of trade will soon replace that of barter. The navigation of the Nyanza has become less dangerous since the Arabs' dhows have made their appearance on its waters, and in U-Ganda itself the former miry paths are being replaced by good routes. The road connecting the capital with its port on the Nyanza woidd do honour to Europeans. It is carried over a swamp on a solid foundation of wild-palm trunks placed side by side. The Egyptian conquests at the time of their greatest extension never reached the frontiers of U-Ganda. The officers of the Khedive penetrated into the country only under the title of ambassadors. The old feudal system has undergone no change since the kingdom has entered into commercial relations with Arabs and Europeans. In thtrary the king is absolute master of land and people, and is free to act as he pleases in matters of smtill moment, such as the lives of his women or of the wakopi, members of the agricultural class. M'tesa well deserved his name, ( ai Nonrn-RAOT apbica. wliich uccoriling to ono intorprotiition incan« " ho who mnkm ull tn'mblc." A small army of oxocutionom, their houdH Im>uii(1 with conU, ulwuyn uwuittnl hin ordi'm, ac(;otnpunyin^ him in ull hin oxiKKlitions. Hut ho wan not ubHolutomantor in Ntuto ailuirH, hiH power l)«ing controlled by three »rrtXM«|/«, or hereditary vanauU. The katekiro, or chief functionary, a nort of "mayor of the pulaco " ond governor of U-Du, is nominated by the king, and may be chosen oven amongst the peasantry. ][e takos his place with the sovereign and tho three wakungu in the privy council, and in tho king's absence presides over tho luchiko or governing body, com])osod of all the grandees of the country, vassals and feudatories, wakungu and wakongoli. The head cook and other palace dignitaries have also a voice in tho council. At tho death of tho king tho right of nomination belongs to the three wakungu, who select one of his children, imprison his brothers during their minority, and then bum them, reserving two or three to continue the race, should the new king die without issue. If the three great chiefs disagree as to the choice of the sovereign, tho question is decided by war, the conqueror enthroning his choice. For their battles the wakungu have no lack of men, all able-bodied persons, from five hundred thousand to six hundred thousand altogothor, being trained in the use of arms and obliged to obey the first summons of their chiefs. The royal guard is partly composed of peoples of Eastern Sudan and Dongola, deserters from the Egyptian army. The fleet consists of several hundred canoes. Topography of U-Ganda. Tho capital changes according to the king's caprice. In 1862, at the time of Spcko and Grant's visit, the royal residence was at lianda, which, for a country of large trade, would appear to be most favourably situated on the crest ot the portage between the great gulf A Mwaru-Luajerri, the Murchison Bay of the English, and the river Eatawana-Luajerri, which joins the Nile at Lake Ibrahim. A few scattered hamlets in the midst of ruins, which must soon disappear, are now all that remains of Bonda. Rubaga is the most important present capital, lying about seven miles towards the north-west, on a hill encircled by rivulets which form the head- stream of the M'werango river, flowing through the Kafu to the Nile. On the summit of the hill, visible from afar, with its lofty gables and flagstaff, stands the king's palace, surrounded with gardens, above which appear the conic roofs of the huts inhabited by his wives and officers. Northwards another hill bears a second royal residence, surrounded by the village of Nabulagala, Stanley's Ullagala. This is the main dep6t of the Arab merchants, and here begins the caravan route towards M'ruli, the principal market-town of the Somerset Nile. The two most frequented ports of U-Ganda on the shores of the great lake are U-Savara, on the banks of Murchison Bay, and M'tebbi, on the gulf limited south by the Sesse Archipelago. The Kavirondo and Nanda Countries. East of Nyanza the most powerful state is that of Kavirondo, which is said to exercise a sort of suzerainty over all ilic riverain peoples between the islands of BS9iJBft">w v^^^tMwarf.v A imnU in onlorn, r in Htuto uln. Tho vomor of H'UHantry. y council, mpoaod of mkongoli. incil. At mgu, who and then king die aovoreign, For their from five the use of 1 guard is from the )he time of country of ;he portage nglish, and n. A few ow all that ibout seven a the head- e. On the , stands the ■oofs of the irs a second gala. This •ute towards frequented le banks of chipelago. ih is said to le islands of THE KAVIIIONDO AND NANDA COtNTilUW. W TT-Korpw6 M)Uth-pn«t, and tho country of U-Onna north-raHt, of tho gront lako. ThuH tho two kingtlomM of (Innda and Kavirondo would appear to Imi m-arcoly ■o]mrutcd by tho region inhabitinl by tho Wu-Hogu. Situahnl n«'arly tiiwanU the middle of tho ountom '■oust according to RuvonHtoin'H map, but to thu uorth-oaHt of tho lako following tho n' .^tomont of ThotnpNon, tho most rocont explorer, Kavirondo, projMirly no cullod, i« a grassy pluin in tho centre of which ri«3 sovoral littlo iw)latfd IuHm, whilst in the north staudu fho lofty Mount Manda. Although the country bus an abundant rainfuU, it it divernitied i>nly by a few clumpn of troos. Numerous rivers wind tbrouj,'U ho plain, aud one of thorn, tho Mori, appears to flow from tho lako, evai)orttting in u iapr«'8«ion bolow tlic level of tho Nyanza. But this romark- able statement doponds oxclusivoly on the report of an Arab dealer, and made on his return from a journey to the interior. Tho Mori is said to bo crosstMl by u suHiKJUsion bridge facing tho town of Kumret^. I'ho island of U-Kava, not far from tho fluvial basin, is said by Folkin and Wilson to be occupied by u race of dwarfs with a mean stature of less than four feet and a-half. The Wa-Kavirondo are of the Negro type ; they are tall and robust, with olmost black ooraplexion, flat nose, and thick lips. Judging from their language, as well as their features, they appear to belong to the same stock as the 8hilluks of the Middle Nile. In appearance and speech thoy are quite distinct from the other riverain populations, who are of Bantu origin. The women tattoo their backs and breasts, the men rarely decorating themselves in this fashion. But like so many other African peoples they do not leave the teeth in their natural state, but extract the two middle incisors of the lower jaw. They go naked, or else only wear a waist-cloth, to which the women add a tail of bark. This portion of their costume, like the plaited tails of other native communities, explains the fables, so long believed by the Arabs, of African tribes foiming the connecting link between man and the monkey. Apart from this tail the Kavirondo women have no ornaments, but they daub their bodies with grease. Unlike the Wa-Ganda, the Wa-Eavirondo do not consider themselves dishonoured by work, but take their share with the women in all agricidtural operations. They also employ themselves in the chase, in fishing, in breeding domestic birds, in which they are very skilful, and in navigating the Nyanza with sailing boats much more substantial than the canoes of the Wa-Ganda. They are as peaceful as they are industrious ; nevertheless they defend themselves courageously against attacks, and the palisades surrounding their dwellings are carefiilly avoided by the wandering tribes of the interior. The Wa-Eavirondo have a king, who is not master over the lives of his subjects ; the country is more of a confederation of republican villages than a feudal realm like U-Ganda. The Wa-Euri and Wa-Eara, living more to the south on the coastlands bounded by Speko Gulf, resemble the Wa-Eavirondo in language and customs, except that the Wa-Eara clothe themselves in bark, tattoo the breast, and paint the body red and white by means of clay mixed with oil. But amongst the numerous tribes of the eastern slope of the Nyanza, several constitute by their customs, and possibly their origin, isolated ethnical enclaves distinct from the surrounding groups. Such are the Wa-Nanda, inhabiting the upland valleys of the same name A 11 I ■ ^'wsi*:is 90 NOETH-BAST AFEIOA. north of Kavirondo. They appear to be an extremely ferocious tribe, carefully avoided by all traders passing in the vicinity of their haunts. They are described as " clothed with knives," which they wear on their arms, thighs, body, and waist. The centres of population in U-Kavirondo are sufficiently large to merit the ""■■ Fig. 80. — U-Ganda: Rvhaoa, PniKaPAL Rbbidsnce op M'Tesa. name of towns. The largest is Kahondo, situated on the eastern frontier, near the Masai country. At ITyawa, about four hours' march to the north-west, stands the residence of the king, followed in the same direction and about the same distance by Sandegi, the depot of the Mussulman merchants of Zanzibar, commanding a iW i ifeiw] THE U-NYOEO TEEBITORY. 91 , carefully described and waist, merit the view of the Nanda range. The caravuna, which travel slowly, scarcely making more than eight or nine miles a day, take two whole months to perform the journey. The missionaries of Islam, more fortunate than those labouring in U-Ganda, claim Eavirondo as their conquest ; at least the greater part of the people have submitted to the rite of circumoisiou. er, near the ;, stands the ime distance imandiug a The U-Nyoro Territomv. North of U-Ganda most of the peninsular district lying between the Albert Nyanza and the Somerset Nile belongs to the Wa-Nyoro people. Formerly all the country stretching between the two Nilotic lakes constituted the vast kingdom of Kitwara, governed by a dynasty of Wa-Huma conquerors. This empire has been divided into many states, of which U-Ganda is the most powerful ; but the sovereign of U-Nyoro would appear still to enjoy a sort of virtual sovereignty over his neighbours, and always bears officially the title of King of Kitwara. Nevertheless U-Nyoro cannot be compared to U-Ganda, either in the extent of its cultivated territory, in the number of its people, or in political unity. In spite of the natural frontier, indicated by the banks of the Nile and the lake, its limits are rendered imcertain by the incursions of hostile tribes. Uninhabited borderlands separate U-Nyoro from U-Ganda ; but here lies a region of great conmiercial importance, belonging at once to two kingdoms as a place of transition, which caravans can traverse only imder escort, usually choosing the night for their march. This debatable region is the zone of land comprised between the marshes of Ergugu and the abrupt bend of the Nile at M'ruli. The Wa-Ganda are compelled to force their way through it when proceeding from Kubaga to Sudan, and the Wa-Nyoro of the west have no other way by which to visit their villages situated to the west of the Nile. U-Nyoi'o is in a continual state of warfare, dividing it into petty states, which increase or diminish in extent according to the vicissitudes of the battlefield. It is the custom on the death of the sovereign for his nearest relations to dispute the succession ; the corpse is not buried till after the victory of one of the competitors. The latter, however, often hastens to celebrate his triumph prematurely, in which case the war continues for generations between brothers and cousins. At present U-Nyoro is divided between hostile kingdoms ; besides which Egyptian garrisons, cut off from the centre of administration at Khartum, still occupy the line of the Nile between the bend of Foweira and Lake Albert Nyanza. Numerous tribes have also retained their independence, especially in the high south-^westem district between the two great lakes. U-Nyoro presents on the whole the aspect of a plateau with a north-easterly slope parallel to Lake Albert Nyanza. It enjoys a copious rainfall, and many depressions in the surface are occupied with swamps rendered dangerous to the wayfarer by the holes caused by the heavy tramp of elephants. The lacustrine basins are also strewn with gneiss and granite boulders, whose presence in these alluvial tracts seems inexplicable. Except in the vicinity of the Nile, vegetation appears to be on the whole less exuberant than in U-Ganda. Leguminous plants, ^Bi 92 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. however, are more numerously represented, and the delicate foliage of the acacia forests looks in some places like a light haze enveloping the stems and branches of the trees. Antelopes still abound in these regions even on the route hitherto followed by most explorers along the Ehor-Ergugu between Rubaga and M'ridi. The Wa-Nyoro are a smaller people than their Wa-Ganda neighbours, to whom they also appear to be inferior in physical strength and intelligence, but not in the art of forging and pottery. They belong to the same race, and speak an allied Bantu dialect, but are of a lighter complexion, usually a dull red, and the hair is crisp rather than woolly. Although of cleanly habits, never failing to wash their hands before and after meals, their huts are badly kept, and constructed mostly of branches planted round a stake, and converging upwards so as to form a regular cone. Their only domestic animals are cows, goats, and a poor breed of poiiltry. In case of distemper these animals are treated by bleeding, and the blood W ii ! I Kg. 81.— U-Ntobo. 8«tfel iSfioOfiOO. «>1BI» saved for human consumption. Like the Wa-Ghmda, the Wa-Nyoro wear clothes, and consequently hold themselves superior to the naked Negro people dwelling beyond the Nile. The young men, however, do not assume their bark or skin garments before the age of puberty, when they are accepted as members of the tribe, and their new dignity celebrated by the extraction of the four lower incisors. Two lines tattooed on both sides of the forehead further distinguish them from the surrounding populations. Polygamy is universal, even amongst the poor, who have always two or three wives, although of " inferior quality," for a handsome spouse would cost at least four cows. As in U-Ganda, brothers may marry their sisters, fathers their daughters, while the son inherits the whole paternal harem except his own mother. The king has a general monopoly of all the unmarried women, for whom he selects husbands amongst his courtiers. The sons of these unions becraue royal pages. ■^«33^aE*aqK;3»p-- — ;.:.-, -i'M ^'jS i SSJ^K"**^ ' T -IT- THE U-NYOBO TERRITOEY. 98 F the daughters following their mother's profession. The wives of the king and chiefs would regard themselves as degraded by manual labour, their whole ambition being to grow corpulent and acquire double the weight of their humbler sisters. Few of the Wa-Nyoro women give birth to more than two or three children. Islam hbs already penetrated into U-Nyoro. But although many of the chiefs have become converts, the bulk of the people have accepted of the new religion little beyond its prescriptions regarding prohibited food. The " ihedicine-men " still imiversally practise magic, seeking to secure the favour of "the great wizard" and of the spirit-world by means of charms, incantations, and dances. The fortune- tellers, belonging to a wandering caste compared by Emin-Bey to the European gypsies, are also frequently consulted. The " evil eye " is much dreaded, especially that of old women, whose glance suffices to poison food and drink. All disorders are attributed to sorcery, and in order to recover the patient spits three times in the face of every woman he meets, the cure being effected when he reaches the actual delinquent. Every event, from the meeting of a wild beast to the motion of a leaf, has its auspicious or unfavourable meaning, so that the people spend their lives in studying the aspect of vegetation, the flight of birds, the state of the firmament, and all other outward phenomena. No one ever retraces his steps, and if he has to return he chooses a path parallel to the first, or else opens a new way through the bush. The blacksmith accompanies his work with a song, the words of which enter into the metal and endow it with its peculiar properties. Two men swear friendship by mingling their blood and dipping a coffee'berry in the mixture in order to assimilate their respective qualities. Between two uterine brothers mutual trust is unbounded and never betmyed. Hence the king selects his most intimate ministers amongst those united to him by the brotherhood of con- sanguinity. The nocturnal dances, celebrated by the flickering light of torches or the luiid flame of the stake, are said to produce an ineffaceable impression. The wizards, daubed with ochre, decked with fantastic finery, conjuring the demons by their wild gesticulations, leaps, and shouts, flitting about in the glare and suddenly plunging into the surrounding gloom, appear themselves like spectres of the night, or fantastic beings from another world. The Wa-Nyoro have also a warlike dance like that of their kindred, the southern Zulus, and, like them also, make war with assegai, spear, and shield. U-Nyoro is also occupied by peoples of other stocks, the most powerful of which are the Lango or Longo, who hold both sides of the Nile between Foweira and Magungo. These are probably of the same origin as the Wa-Huma, and even still speak a Galla dialect. They enjoy full freedom, forming independent communities in the midst of the Wa-Nyoro, and recognising the authority of the chiefs only during their warlike expeditions. They are otherwise specially devoted to the offices of the toilet, spending long hours in arranging their elegant or imposing head-dresses. The prevailing fashion is a kind of helmet, in which every lock of hair is interlaced with many-coloured wools, and terminating in a superstructure of plumes, wreaths of shells or glass beads, or curved projections in. imitation of buffalo horns. Whole years are required to bring some of these sumptuous head- ■^ wf I'W.Jnaw 'tyt.'^ii ..UiJ^W,iiir«i —w 84 NOBTH-FAST AFRICA. dressea to perfection. The Lango women are the finest and most B3nnmetrical in the whole region of the equatorial lakes. They wear little clothing beyond waist- bands, ueckhice8, armlets, and rings. South of the Nile is found another ethnological gpx)up, formed by the Wa-Tchopi or Shefalu, in speech and appearance resembling the Shilluks, whose proper domain lies some six hundred miles farther north. According to the national traditions, the Shefalu are descended from a conquering people, who came originally from that direction. Maaindi, on a river flowing to Lake Albert, was the residence of the king of U-Nyoro when the country was first visited by Speke, Grant, and Baker. But in ^877 it was replaced by Nyamoga, which is also conveniently situated in the centre of the region enclosed between the lake and the great bend described by the Nile below M'ruli. The latter place, which occupies an important strategic and com- mercial position on the Nile at the converging point of the caravan route from U-Ganda, has ceased to be the advanced southern outpost of the Egyptians. Even before the Mussulman revolt in Dar-For the troops had been withdrawn from M'ruli and from Kirota, which lies in a forest clearing farther north-west. The western bulwark of the Khedive's possessions is, or was till recently, Foweira (^Fawera, Fauvera, Faveira), whose site has been shifted to a cliif on the east bank of the Nile near the Kubuli confluence, and not far from the point where the river trends westward to Lake Albert. North of the river stands another fortified station near the Earuma rapids, and north of Fanyatoli, residence of one of the most powerful "Wa-Nyoro chiefs. A third Egyptian fortress in U-Nyoro is Magungo, on the right bank of the Nile, where its sluggish current joins Lake Albert. Being enclosed by a ditch ten feet broad, this place is impregnable to the badly armed and undisciplined troops of the Lango or Wa-Nyoro chiefs. East of Magungo steamers ascend the river as far as the wooded gorges of the Murchison Falls. Mahaghi (^Mahahi), another fortified station, has been formed by the Egyptians on the west side of Lake Albert, where it is sheltered by a headland from the northern winds. The whole of this coast region, which takes the name of Lur, is inhabited by Negro tribes akin to those of the Bahr-el-Ghazal, and speaking a language which differs little from that of the Shuli east of the Nile. In habits they resemble the "Wa-Nyoro, with whom they formerly maintained constant commercial relations, and whose suzerainty they recognise ; without, however, paying any tribute to the king. South-west of the Egyptian station are some hot springs, sulphurous, like all hitherto discovered in the Upper Nile regions. A considerable traffic is carried on by water between both sides of the lake, especially with the ports of Afbakovia ( Vacovia) and Kibero, where salt is yielded in abundance by the surrounding argillaceous clays. ' -atp^^smjtejaiiiwfeigai ii^^ Btrical in md waist- ''a-Tchopi iv domain ;raditions, from that le king of But in ;he centre the Nile and com- •ute from IS. Even om M'ruli e western (^Fawera, ik of the ver trends ation near powerfid \o, on the t. Being kdly armed Magungo f'alls. Egyptians from the of Lur, is speaking a In habits i constant , however, e some hot ig^ons. A , especially abundance ■■-iss*»^ ^^\ .A '^:%' r aP ;'(-;■'. CHAPTER IV. ■■•«3^5S3*^ REGION OP THE UPPER NILE TRIBUTARIES. HE sectioa of ^he Nilotic basin comprised between Lake Albert uiid the Bahr-el-Ghazal. confluence presents a marked contrast to the surrounding land in its abundant waters, its converging streams, extensive marshy tracts, and the general imiformity of its slope. The natural limits of this distinct geog^phical domain are formed liy the course of the Nile and Asua on the east and south-east, and of the Bahr- el-Ghazal on the north. In the historic life of the continent the inhabitants of this watery region have also played a separatiB part. Here lies the chief connecting route between the Nile and Congo basins. The water-parting being marked by no perceptible " divide," no barrier is presented to the migration of peoples between the two great arteries. Thus the hydrographio parting-line forms no natural limit between ethnical groups, some of which, such as the Niam-Niam, occupy both sides of the slope, while continually encroaching northwards. Through this region of transition must pass the future continental highway from east to west between the Red Sea and the Bight of Benin. It has already been partly opened by Feney, Lejean, Petherick, Piaggia, Schweinfurth, Junker, Bohndorff, and other explorers are eagerly following in their footsteps. Northwards this region has a natural limit ; indicated, however, not by any water-parting, but by the climate, which produces a marked Cimtrast in the aspect of the land, its vegetation, fauna and inhabitants. The latitudinal depression flooded by the waters of the Bahr-el-Arab coincides in a general way with this climatic frontier. South of it the rainfall is sufficiently copious to feed perennial streams, or at all events rivers flowing for six months in the year. But on the north side we have nothing but wadies flushed only during the heavy rains. Hence the g^reat difference presented by the forest vegetation along the right and left banks of the Bahr-el-Arab. On one side we find the baobab, with its huge inflated trimk, on the other the lulu, or butter-tree, in some places covering hundnnis of square miles. The large apes never cross the frontier into Kordofan ; nor d >es the elephant venture north of the Bahr-el-Ghazal, where the flocks and herds are also free from the ravages of the tsetse-fly. The southern region belongs to the Negro and his homed cattle, the northern to the horse and camel-breeding Arab. if NORTU-EAST AFIIICA. Fi-oBA AND Fauna. The extensive tract comprised between the Ruhr-el- Jebel and the Hahr el- Arab, although clearly characterised by its ramifying waters, has no general geographical designation, and is known only by the names of the tribes occupying its various sections. Politically the western portion is known as the province of the Bahr-el- Ohazttl, a name which should properly be restricted to the basin of this affluent of the Nile. The whole territory might bo collectively called the " fluvial region," for here are concentrated all the western affluents of the Nile north of Lake Albert. Its total area may be estimated at about 140,000 square miles, and its mean altitude at 2,500 feet above the sea. The soil being composed of disin- tegrated granite mingled with fluvial alluvia and humus, is extremely fertile. Vast tracts are covered with a red earth overlying soft iron ores, which combining with the sediment and decayed vegetation washed down by the streams, is also very productive. But where the ferruginous deposit lies too near the surface, Fig. 32. — Watir-pabtino bbtwbbn thb Nils and Congo. Seal* t : 7,000,000. p* b- i//>r/ ^N- wr /If A^ 4 .... /V/A M- Af/A 8u* E , of Green*vioh IM large plants are unable to strike deep root, and even after the rains little is seen except a scant herbage. Elsewhere the soil yields heavy crops, while ita sponta- neous growths comprise many species of great economic value. Such are the ruhm {criodendron an/ractttoaum), a large cotton-plant, and the Mu {butyrospermum ParkiiX whose fruit contains much oil and butter. Other plants supply several varieties of caoutchouc; and here and there is mot the higlik, or "elephant-tree," {balanites ^gyptiaca), under which pits are often dug to capture the huge pachyderms, who greedily devour the foliage of this plant. The elephant still abounds in this region, although from five thousand to six thousand are said to be taken every year. The species of antelopes have been estimated at a hundred (P), and some large apes, supposed by Felkin to be chim- panzees, are much dreaded by the natives. Some hundreds of these bimanes attacked the station of Gaba Shamb4 on the Nile, and destroyed several houses, a fire completing the ruin of the depdts. On the other hand, neither the horses, asses, mules, camels, nor the pack-oxen of the Baggara Ai^bs survive more than a iiiiiB i iiiiii^ r el- Arab, tgraphical ts various ) Btthr-ol- uffluent of [ region," of Lake «, and its of disin- (ly fertile, combining 08, is also ;e surface, V" .^. Jm rf £_ 5* 5£". ttle is seen its sponta- e tbe ruhm roapermum ply several lant-tree," the huge sand to six have been be chim- e bimanes 1 houses, a the horses, lore than a 'INHABITANTS. 97 twelvemonth in the wooded districts skirting Dnr-For u . Kon -Inn on the south. The destruction of these unacclimatised animals is tittril '>^ I y I^n' iii>y U> the spontaneous development of multitudes of entozoa, wbil ho nutivo. r uiucb from the " Medina worm " as far as the third parallel nut w uf the e<^. uu-. Inhabitants. - ' Fifty million people might easily live in this fertile region, in some pan of which the villages follow in close succession, and the jungle has been repluctnl by gardens. But almost everywhere are visible the traces of murderous and maraud- ing inroads, and many districts recently under cultivation are now completely depopulated. Nowhere else in East Africa has so much ruin been caused by the slave-dealers, including many Egyptian officials, who for many years openly carried on the traffic in human flesh. Protected by their very position, these functionaries were able quietly to promote their " civilising mission," as it was pompously described in the official reports. Even still the routes followed by the convoys of wretched captives regularly forwarded from the Arab stations to the Lower Nile may be recognised by the bleached bones of the victims of this nefarious commerce. And when it was at last officially interdicted, the ostentatious Government procla- mations were easily evaded by the Mohammedan and Christian dealers alike. They no longer engaged personally in the razzias, but they fomented the tribal feuds, encouraging the slaughter of the men, the capture of the women and children. Then humanity itself seemed to require their intervention, to rescue the captives and reserve them for a less cruel bondage in the northern cities. Such was the regime introduced by the " era of progress," under which not only was the country wasted, but its surviving inhabitants debuaed by the hitherto unknown vices of a " higher culture." When at last the European governor, Gordon Pasha, attempted in 1878 to put an end to these horrors, the revolt broke out, and while the functionaries were officially encouraged to act vigorously, the rebels were secretly supplied with munitions of war. The slave-dealers were openly or covertly abetted by nearly all the Eg3rptian officials. The hope, however, of establishing a separate state under the notorious slaver, Suleiman, was thwarted by Gordon's energetic action, aided by the skill and zeal of his lieutenant, Gessi. And although both of these brave men were soon recalled and sacrificed to court intrigue, the old regime of terrorism seems never to have been restored. The Khedive's authority still survives, at least in name, and the Eordofan rebels seem again circumvented in their attempts to cross the Bahr-el-Ghazal by Gordon's return to Ehartimi in 1884. Meantime the communications with the north have been interrupted. By the very force of circumstances this province has, at least for a time, become autono- mous ; but the time seems still remote when the Sudan will be able to dispense altogether with foreign intervention in its internal affairs. A bright prospect is nevertheless in store for it, as soon as the slave- trade has yielded to legitimate commerce, dealing in com, fruits, vegpetables, buttar, cotton, hides, metals, gums, 7— AF. '! ' II ,vJm. ^■::S.,K?*«;*?:j.ffi*(*' ""^SS3iiP" H NORTH- BAHT AFHirA. - wax, caoutchouc, and many othor local produotn initoad of tho proMont Mtapliw-— ivory and human flonh. Tho climuto is auitublo to Kuropeann willing to load M)ber and active Hvor. hut tho oxtonaivo Hwampn in tho luw-lyin); dlHtricta munt always render it dangerous to immigrants, until health resorts, like those of India, have been ostablishcnl in tho southern uplands. The native populations have in many places become intermingled through the constant local wars and razzias of the sluve-hunters ; the old tribal limits can no longer be determined ; the territories have shifted their inhabitants. During the last generation stable communities have been maintained only on the banks of the Nile between Magungo and Dufil^, where tho slave-dealers have scarcely succeeded in penetrating or establishing their footing for any length of time. Hence the population is still dense in this district, in which we may wander for days without meeting any waste or unreclaimed lands. In this peaceful region, for generationa undisturbed by foreign wan, the manners of the people have become softened, crime is almost unknown, and the traveller may move about freely unarmed. IIow great the contrast with those communities that have been harassed by the slave* hunter I Yet nearly all are of one origin, and had formerly the same habits, the same social and political organisation. Mostly of Negro stock, they speak languages entirely different from those current amongst the Bantu peoples of the equatnrial lakes. But. of these diverse tongues, two or three only have been reduced to writing by the missionaries. The Bari, Denka and Shilli. k have thus been partially fixed by g^tnmatical works and religious translations. Of all the African ling^stic groups, this is on the whole the least known, although the country has been more frequented by Europeans than many other regions of the interior. ' The Shuli and Madi. Southernmost of these Nilotic tribes are the Shuli on the east, and the kindred Lur, or Luri, on the west bank of the river, where it emerges from Lake Albert. Their joint domain comprises the left side of the lake, and an extensive tract stretching along the Nile northwards beyond the Asua affluent. The Shuli would be of pleasant outward appearance but for the habit of piercing the lower lip, and inserting a piece of crystal, a stick, or any other ornament, three or four inches long. They also extract the four upper incisors, causing their utterance to be very indis- tinct, and with an oxide of iron daub their bodies red in all sorts of fantastic forms. Like the Madi on their northern and the Lango on their southern frontier, the Shuli pass a great part of their lives in thus painting and decking themselves. The elaborate headdresses vary according to the taste of each individual, but on all alike the g^reatest care is lavished. Some are raised several stories high, and embellished with ornaments of all kinds — flocks of wool, wreaths of foliage, ring6, strings of pearls — ^the whole forming an architectural edifice sufficiently incom- modious to the bearer. The rich throw an antelope skin over their shoulders, the poor a goatskin, loading wrists, legs, and neck with iron rings. Under this weight BlULl AN]> MADI. itaplc 3ud M>ber Rt always (litt, have nugh the tfl cuu no uring thu ks of the Buoceodod [enoe Uie 'S without sneratioiu softened, ed. How the slave- labits, the ley speak lies of the liave been have thus Of all the Qough the pns of the he kindred ike Albert, nsive tract Ihuli would TOT lip, and nches long, very indis- istic forms, rontier, the themselves. I, but on all high, and iage, ring6, ntly incom- oulders, the this weight of mntnl lut'omotion buoomoa difHoult, whilo to liMik to the right or loft llio fiiHtiiotw ttblo Shuli htw to whucl hiM whulu btMly half round. Tho uoHtunio in conipli'tetl with red and whitu boa(U, and divcrm) amuluta of ailk, rootn, Uvth, Itom, un tuft on the top of the head, which the chiefs deck with ostrich ' feathers. Unlike the Shuli, the Bari do not cover themselves with amulets and bracelets, although some also paint the body, especially for the war dances, and tattoo themselves with arabesques or many-coloured geometrical designs. These operations, undergone at puberty, are verj' dangerous and often end in death. According to Felkin, the Bari, recently decimated by small-pox, have invented and applied the praotice of innooulation, apparently with perfect success. The Bari warriors are considered the bravest of all the Nilotic tribes. Amongst them men are often met wearing on the wrist an ivory bracelet ; these are the hunters who managed to kill an elephant in single combat. The slave-dealers generally recruited their bands of slave-hunters amongst the Bari, and the name of these banditti was dreaded as far as the vicinity of the great lakes. But the Bari have themselves suffered much from the razzias of the slave-traders, certain parts of their territory having been completely depopulated. Knowing that the principal wealth of the Bari consists of cattle, and that they are very proud of these beautifiil animals, decorating them with bells, like the Swiss cows, the slavers first captured their herds, the Bari bringing their own wives and children to ransom them, unless a fortunate expedition enabled them to substitute the families of some neighbouring tribe. The cow is held as sacred amongst these Nile populations. Instead of squatting, like most other Negroes, or sitting cross-legg^, like the Arabs, the Bari are accustomed to sit on stools painted red. Catholic missionaries have been for some time at work amongst the Bari, but with small success, the conduct of the Christian slave-dealers being scarcely of the kind to assist the teachings of the priests. The Bari still adhere to their magical rites, their ancient animistic religion, their worship of the serpent, called by them " g^randmother," and their veneration for the dead, whom they carefully bury in a sitting posture. " Formerly," said they, " we could climb to heaven by a cord con- nected with the stars, but this cord has been broken." The ruins of the church, the head-quarters of the Upper Nile missions, are no longer to be seen, a fine avenue of lemons alone marking the site of what was the city of Oondokoro; the bricks of the Austrian missionaries' ho\ises have also been ground down by the natives, and mixed with grease, with which to paint their bodies. Baker Pasha had made Gondokoro the centre of his administration under the name of Ismailia ; but on account of the «hifting of the river, and the development of marshes and sandbanks, IM NOETH-EAST AFEICA. Gordon removed his residence to Lado, or Lardo, some twelve miles farther down on the left bank of the river. This town, whose brick buildings and sheet-iron roofs are visible above the palisades, presents a fine appearance in comparison with the , neighbouring villages. It is surrounded by a promenade; a eucalyptus, planted by Emin-Bey, towers above the house-tops ; while till recently the quay was crowded with river craft. The other stations in the Bari country above Gondokoro are Kirri and Bcdden, where the river is crossed by a ferry. South-east of Gondokoro stand the villages of Billigong or Belenian, noted for their iron mines and javelin and lance manufacturers. In the neighbouring Lokoya Mountains dwell the bravest Fig. 34.— Babi Smiths. ii*^**^**'"'^ .^.tM^ il of the Bari, against whom the whites settled at Gondokoro had often to protect themselves. Farther north the Berri, Bar, or BeLr, ocoupying the prairies north- east of Gondokoro, form a group of tribes distinct from the Bari, speaking an idiom nearly identical with that of the Shuli, whom they also resemble in customs and appearance. Another kindred people are the Shir, whose villages line both banks of the Nile below Lado. Possessing no iron, these blacks, fashion their arrow-heads from ebony-vrood. The Latuka Country. East of the Bari, a territory well watered by wadie.) flowing towards the Nile from the south-east is occupied by the Latuka, who ai'e entirely difEerent froin THE LATUKA COUNTBY. 108 her down iron roofs with the )lanted by s crowded okoro are i^ondokoro id javelin he bravest 1 to protect dries north- Dg an idiom customs and both banks arrow-heads irds the Nile Serent item ^^.M-. Fig. 36. -KovTBs OF ExPLouRus £a8t or TUB Bahr-bl-Jbhbl. fit)? ',.; Soale 1 : 0,000,000. their Negro neighbours. Nearly all travellers regard them as of Galla stock, and their language appears to belong to the same family as that of the Ilm-Orma. Their high foreheads, rge eyes, straight and sbapely nose, thick but not pouting lips, leave little doubt as to their origin. Other populations living more to the east, towards the Sobat, especially the Arboreh, belong to the same family ; but the Akkara and Irenga speak dif- ferent languages. The character of the Latuka differs g^atly from that of the neighbouring Negroes ; they are mer- rier, franker, and so brave that slave- dealers have neve r succeeded in captur- ing them. If their tribes were united, instead of continually fighting, one against the other, they would as- suredly be one of the most powerful African nations. Although these Galla immigprants have to a great extent preserved their original speech, physical traits, and character, the Latuka have become a half-caste race, and have adopted many customs of the Nilotic Negro peoples. Like the Bari and Shilluk, they woidd seem to be ashamed to wear clothes; but they take great 'pride in dressing the hair in elegant styles, mostly affecting the form of a helmet. The completion of these ela- borate headdresses is a work of eight or ten years. The hair, bound with bark strips, is made into a sort of thick felt, ornamented with glass and china beads ; a copper plate glitters above the forehead, and nodding tufts of feathers and plumes crown the super- structure. The women, less elegantly formed than the men, and possessing tmusual strength, have no right to all this finery, and confine themselves to a few tattooings ; they wear a queue like a horsetail, and like most other women of this region, extract the four lower incisors. The Latuka huts resemble those of the neighbouring tribes ; they are shaped like a bell or extinguisher, the only opening bemg a low door, which is entered on all-fours. Near each village is a .190 HUM. -.,-.>.. 4^.. 104 NORTH-EAST AFEICA. : I ) 1 1 I I I i cemetery, whither the bones of the dead, first buried near the dwelling, are brought after they have been completely decomposed. Funeral dances are kept up round the dead for weeks together. The territory of the Latuka is very fertile, and their tobacco, although nearly always adulterated with foreign substances, is in high demand among the neighbouring peoples. In this country the leopard is the only beast that is feared, as it often attacks man. The lion is so little dreaded that Emin-Bcy tells us that one of these animals having fallen into a leopard-trap, the people hastened to set it free. The Latuka district is bounded on the east by the Lofit or Lafit range, rising some 3,300 feet above the plains, and on the south by still higher mountains. The whole country consists of a long fertile valley studded with trees, amongst which is the " higlik," whose saccharine fruit is so rich in potassium that it is used as soap. The villages are tolerably numerous, many even meriting the names of towns. Tarrangoleh, the chief town, situated in the midst of the Latuka country on the high bank of the Ehor Kohs, is said to contain no less than three thousand huts, not including the sheds for some ten or twelve thousand head of cattle. It is surrounded by a strong palisade, each house being further protected by a separate enclosure. Three-storied turrets stand in many parts of the city, in which sentinels keep guard during the night, ready to strike the war drum at the least appearance of danger. One main street intersects the town, all the rest being merely winding alleys, into which the cows can only enter one by one — an arrangement which simplifies counting, and prevents the enemy from surprising and carrying off their herds. In the northern region of this country, the two villages of Wakkala, ' or Okkela, and Loronio, also known as Latomeh, from the name of its chief, have also a large population. According to Emin-Bey, the women, as in U-Ganda, are far more numerous than the men. • The Latuka are the most easterly of all the Galla tribes, imless the Lango of the Upper Nile and the Wa-Huma of the plateaiix are also to be regarded as branches of this race. But on the B&hr-el- Jebel itself and to the west of this river none but Negroes are met. The Niambara, or Niam-bari, occupying a hilly district which forms the water-parting between the Nile and its tributary the Yei, are akin to their easterly neighbours, the Bari, although their speech is distinguished by a greater variety of tones and sibilant consonants than the language of the neighbouring peoples. Like the Bari, the Niambara are tall and strong and go naked, but load themselves with iron bracelets, rings, and other ornaments of the same metal; while the women wear daggers at t\w girdle. Although earrings are unknown amongst most of the Nilotic peoples, the Niambara pierce the lobes of the ears, passing glass trinkets through them, and, like the Orechones of South America, distending them on each side of the face. The women also pierce the lips at the comers, and insert a fragment of quartz, or if that is not available, a wooden cylinder or a piece of reed. They wear no loin-cloths, but only a scrap of leather, leaves, or occasionaUy a small bell. About the middle of the century, before the arrival of the ivory merchants, elephants' tusks were of such little value that they were scarcely used except as stakes for the cattle i ! ' ( tii "^Afssmmm mmm ss^ssss^^ 1 THE DENKA. ji^^S MW re brought up round , and their a in high is the only 3aded that 1-trap, the age, rising mountains. 8, amongst t it is used e names of ka country le thousand Atle. It is a separate )h sentinels appearance ng merely rrangement sarrying off •f Wakkala,' chief, have ■Ganda, are le Lango of egarded as )f this river ing a hilly ibutary the r speech is s than the Eire tall and and other th(^ girdle, le Niambara nd, like the face. The tz, or if that loin-cloths, ; the middle asks were of the cattle enclosures. The Niambara hunt this huge pachyderm in a totally different manner from the other tribes. A man concealed amongst the foliage of a tree waits till the beaters have driven the animal under the branch where he is stationed, lance in hand ; then the iron head, from 26 to 30 inches long, plunges to the shoulders into the elephant's back, generally producing a mortal wound. Besides being skilful hunters, the Niambara also carefully cultivate their orchards and fields, have beehives round their huts, and as smiths rival the Bari of Beleni&n. One of the chief villages bears the name of the tribe. It is situated 2,000 feet above the sea, in a valley surrounded by high hills, joining by a lateral branch the mountain rangpe which skirts the Nile from Mugi to Dufil^. The pyramid-shaped Ku-Gu peaks rise above the grassy plains of the Niambara, and mineral springs, used alike by natives and the Arab dealers, burst forth in many parts of the country. The Denka. Of all the peoples living on the banks of the Bahr-el-Jebel, the Denka or Dinka, also called Jeng and Jangheh, occupy the most extensive domain. Their territory may be estimated at about 40,000 square miles, and their tribes or separate clans are counted by the dozen. The best known are, naturally, those which come in contact with the traders, such as the Tuich, the Bor, the Eij or Eitch, and Eliab on the Nile, and the Waj, Rek, and Afoj to the west, on the Bahr-el-Ghazal tributaries. Other Denka communities are also settled on the right bank of the Bahr-el-Abiad, below the Sobat . confluence. But although occupying the route necessarily followed by all travellers ascending the Upper Nile or penetrating to the Congo basin, the Denka have in no way altered their mode of life under the influence of foreign civilisation. They have remained free on their plains or marshes, buying next to nothing from the Arab merchants, the milk of their herds, the fruits of their orchards, and the seeds and vegetables of their fields sufficing for all their wants. On the right bank of the Nile, in the country of the tribe of the same name, stands Boty a fort built by the Egyptian Government to overawe the Denka. Like the Bari, the Denka have also been visited by Italian and Austrian Catholic missionaries, who had settled themselves at Panom or Fautentum, below Bor in the Eij country, on the left bank of the Nile ; but they were forced to quit this establishment of the Holy Cross (Santa Crooe, Heiligen Ereutz), on account of the epidemics that ravag^ the mission. Nor did their proselytising labours produce any results beyond the collection of vocabularies and translations that they brought back from the Denka country. The Mohammedan missionaries have also had little success amongst the Nilotic peoples, who have remained nature-worshippers, like most of the other Central African peoples. Like the Bari, who speak an allied language, the Denka are ashamed to wear clothes, the women alone attaching hides to their girdle. They do not however despise ornaments, wearing iron rings on the arms, ankles, and ears, placing ostrich feathers en ■ the crown of the head, tattooing the face to distinguish ■"TSSttf! i 106 NORTH-EAST AFBICA. themselves from other tribes, and extracting the incisors of the lower jaw. Nearly all of them shave the hood, but the dandies paint their hair so as to make it resemble that of Europeans, and give it a reddish hue by moistening it with animal matter. The natural complexion is of a fine bronze hue ; but to prevent it from changing they take constant care to rub the skin with greasy substances and smear it with ashes, which gives thorn a bluish-grey appearance. Being accustomed to kindle large fires every evening, round which they pass the night with their herds to protect them from mosquitoes, their villages become strewn with large ash- heaps, on which they delight in rolling. The Denka of the eastern region are one of the tallest African races, men often being found amongst them over six feet in height. The Eij are especially tall, but westwards, in the Bahr-el-Ghazal basin, their stature is scarcely superior to that of the average European. They possess generally great bodily strength, although they eat but one meal a day, towards sunset. Their leg^ are long and thi.i, and as they live, like the Nuer and Shilluks, in marshy regions, they walk as if on stilts. Seen from a distance moving slowly above the reeds, raising the knee and cautiously advancing their larg^ flat feet, they might easily be mistaken for storks. Like the birds of the swamps, they are accustomed to stand motionless on one leg, resting the other above the knee, and remaining in this position for an hour at a time. Although living in the iron age, as shown by their preference for implements of this metal, the Denka have no smiths, their alluvia being destitute of iron ores ; still they show themselves to be skilful workmen in various industries. Sarcasti- cally called " men of the stick " by their neighbours on account of their favourite weapon, they make ingenious elastic bows and carve curious walking-canes with shell guards to protect the hands from blows. Their houses are larger than those of the neighbouring tribes, and as cooks they possess rare skill, in this respect being unrivalled in Africa. They are great cattle-breeders, possessing vast herds. When an animal falls ill it is separated from the rest, and taken to a well-appointed infirmary for treatment. They never kill but only occasionally bleed them, to drink the blood mixed with milk, and eat the flesh of those alone which die of disease or are killed by accident. In spite of their care, the bovine race appears to degenerate in the country, owing probably to climatic conditions, or else, as Schweinf urth believes, because of the total lock of crossing with other breeds, and the want of salt in their food. Amongst one hundred beasts, scarcely one could be found strong enough to travel from one murah, or enclosure, to another, or to carry burdens such as those of the Baggara cattle. In appearance, however, they are handsome animals enough, with slender horns and delicate heads, and might be almost mistaken for antelopes. The bulls have a mane covering the shoulders, neck, and breast, the body and tail being clipped close, giving them the appearance of small bisons. The Denka also breed goats, the only animals they kill for food. A nation of pastors, living in small groups on the plains, the Denka have no public or private form of worship, although many of their local practices are supposed to recall, a cult resembling that of the primitive Aryan Hindus. Like the Shilluks and Bari, they respect the cow, and have a remarkable veneration for snakes, whicH Nearly make it g it with prevent it tances and ccuatomed with their large ash- on are one six feet in iizal basin, ley possess y, towards i ShUluks, ing slowly 9 flat feet, 6, they are 1 knee, and mplements iron ores ; Sarcasti- ' favourite canes with than those his respect vast herds, l-appointed d them, to biich die of Eu» appears or else, as breeds, and ae could be or to carry ir, they are I might be I shoulders, appearance il for food, e no public supposed to he Shilluks akes, whidi ■i ^ - . ,09 ioinitj an w, are ho Ad Muru placed by xly ; it ia pleasure, unknown, or, served :ed by the medicine, >rted book th a visit, be. Boys they learn accustom heir blunt a distance npleted by to distant irorld," in ds. When hen again longst the unknown fancy, he jtains this Triage are e left bank lan, in the io between how many ; make no tured from 3d a large ted that the not readily f that the n seeing a id which at territory of d the Jiri, nch of the Denkaa, there is a veritable town, Ai/nk, or Du/alla, nfanding on tho right Iwnk of the river and surrounded by n palisade and a deep ditch. Tho dwellings, all built on raised platforms, are crowded together within the enclosure, whilst tho jscriba ' is surrounded by a complete zone of villages. North-west of Ayok, at some distance from tho river, and in a hilly cultivated district, is situated another zeriba, founded by the Arab traders. This is the town of Rumbek, also called Rol, after the name of the river and its chief riverain tribe. It is the chief town of the Egyptian administrative Government. According to Fclkin, tho tt)wn population numbers about 3,000 individuals, and that of the neighbouring villages 30,000. In Rol dress is regarded as h religious privilege, and except the wives of tho Arabs, no women have a right to be seen clothed. ^ , j .* ' The Bongo. Towards the west, the g^at Bongo nation, also called Dor or Doran, occupy tho hilly plains north of tho Niam-Niam, watered by the Jau, the Tonj, the Jur, the Bongo, and their numerous affluents. Schweinfurth, who lived two years amongst the Bongo tribes, says that before the arrival of the slave-dealers they must have numbered at least about 300,000, but at present they appear to be reduced to 100,000. Formerly distributed in countless little independent communities, and living in peace with each other, the Bongos never thought of uniting to resist hostile attacks. When the slave-dealers presented themselves with their bands armed with guns, they easily gained possession of the villages on the plain, established their zeribas at all strategic points, and the whole country was soon at th ir mercy. The whole Bongo nation threatened to disappear in a few years, so rapidly was the country wasted by the slave-trade and oppression. The local civilisation perished, and certain industries were abandoned. Schweinfurth feared that this original people, so remaikable in physical traits and usages, might have been discovered only to be lost to science. It seems, however, that thanks to several years of peace, the country has hegun to revive, although now again threatened by the raids of the Arabs and their native allies. The Bongo families appear to be fairly numerous, owing, perhaps, to their relatively late marriages : the young men marry only between the ages of fifteen and seventeen, whilst in other tribes unions take place at thirteen or fourteen. The Bongo present a striking contrast to tli-.-Lr northern neighbours, the Uenka, although the two languages appear to point at a remote affinity. They are not so black, the skin being of a reddish brown, aimilar in colour to the ferruginous soil composing the terrace lands sloping northwards. Of smaller stature than the Denka, the Bongo are stronger and more thickset, the strong muscles of their thighs and calves presenting a nutrked contrast to the thin legs which give such a "stilted" appearance to the marsh tribes. The women have largely developed hips, and walk like animals, the tail they ornament themselves with, swinging about at each step, adding to the resemblance. . Whilst the Denka head is narrow and long, those of tho Bongo are all brachycephalous, the skull being near'/ round. ■Ml mmm ' ^ ""- ' ^m m mm m NOBTU-KAI^ AFUICA. It i According to Schwdnlurtb, no other people powMM a higher cephalic index; it would ttppoor moreover that in certain di.trictH the mothers compreM the heucU of their chiUlren into certain shapes. Unlike ao many other peoples of the riverain regions, the men do not go nako y .»i - »< BL .i| ^* . j | i < .^ i; . - * .aM« » M^ *fly B ' It SUE DIVR. Ill index; it ) hottflH of B rivoroin ron rings 18, are k) luin-oloth, ^ .8* N WC-* ' ornaments p. Bongo 1 the lip, a to the sides >us are seen The Bongo are perhaps one of the most kindly, gentle, and induntrintim ponplo of Africa. Thoy uro not poMosscd of the cxtraordinury iHiHnion for cuttlo whioh charaoteriaen the Buri und Dcnka, but occupy thoniselvoH montly with ugriculturo, men and women alike preparing the soil and cultivating their plantH with the greatest earn. The fertile red soil yields abundant crops of tolNicco, sosanin, durra, and other alimentary plants ; but in spite of this variety of vogotablu products, including wild roots and mushrooms, the Bongo despise no flesh, fresh or putrid, excepting that of the dog. They drive away the vulture to regale thumsclvcs on the remains of its meal of carrion, oat with relish the worms found in the entrails of the ox, devour scorpions, termite larvoD, and all creeping and crawling insects. As amongn^. other tribes, earth-oating is also very common amongst them. The Bongo are the most skilled of African smiths, supplying the Denka with their arms and ornaments. They build ingenious furnaces to direct a current of air across the iron ore, and manufacture with the aid of very simple tools articles equal in finish to the products of the European workshops. Like the Logone people of the Tsad basin, they have introduced the use of round pieces of this metal as money. They are also skilful builders and carvers, erecting substantial dwellings with circular ledges, which serve as t«rraces or balconies. Round the graves of their chiefs they carve stakes in the form of human beings, which bear a striking resemblance to the divinities of the South-Sea Islanders. But these human figures of the Bongo are not g^s, but merely symbols of the resurrection, a doctrine in which, together with metempsychosis, they are firm believers. The souls of old women are supposed to pass into the bodies of hyeenas, on which account these animals are regarded as possible family relations, and never killed. The DitjR. The Diur, that is to say, " Men of the Woods," " Savages," are so called by the Denka, who regard as inferior beings all tribes not possessing numerous herds of cattle. Their true name is Luoh or Lwo, and like the more southerly Belinda, who have encroached on the Niam-Niam domain, they are immigrants of Shilluk stock. They still speak an almost pure Shilluk dialect, and some of the aired amongst them have preserved the traditional system of tattooing peculiar to that nation. The Diur occupy the last ferruginous terraces of the plateau between the Bongo and Dinka territories. Their domain is watered by several streams, the largest of which takes the name of this tribe. According to Schweinfurth, they number some 20,000, but increase rapidly in times of peace, because their families, remark- able for their mutual affection, are generally numerous. The Diur, much better proportioned than the Denka, are one of the naked peoples classed by the etuiier explorers amongst the " tailed men," as they generally wear two attached to the girdle. Skilful smiths like the Bongo, they also manufacture rings for ornament- ing the arms and legs, but they no longer dress the hair after the complicated Shilluk fashion. Nearly all the men and women have very short hair. The ancient Wim iw i i iJtin ii ■ I 1 I I I i 112 N0ETH-EA8T AFBIOA. customs are disappearing. Thus, amongst others, the Diur have ceased to spit upon each other as a mark of affection ; and the " tree of death," to whose trunk the heads of enemies were nailed, no longer stands at the side of each village. ■M^ Topography. Diur Ohattas, the principal zeriba of the country, is well placed at the junction of the Bongo, Denka, and Diur territories, and in the intermediate zone between the marshy plains and the hilly terraced lands, with their alternate woods and grassy stpjjpes. Sixty miles to the north-east, at the Diur and Momul confluence, sur- rounded by a labyrinth of canals, and to the east of an immense forest, stands the village and the group of depots called Meshra-er-Bek, or " Station of Rek." Here begins the navigation of the Bahr-el-Ghazal, and here is the starting-point for all the caravans proceeding south, south-west, or west, into the region of the Upper Nile tributaries. Before the war which cut off this region from Khartum, a steamer ascended the Bahr-el-Ghazal periodically as far as Meshra-er-Rek. North-west of Diur Ghattas, other zeribas follow in the Diur territory. Such are Kuchuk-Ali, where Gessi gained a final victory over the slave-dealer Suleiman, and where are some fine banana, lemon, and orange g^ves, planted by Schweinf urth ; and Wau, on the left bank of the Diur, surrounded by extensive forests, which furnished the materials for the flotilla in which Gessi sailed down the Diur to the port of the Bahr-el-Ghazal. . li-sr:- »rVi»> .■ The Sereh, Golo, and Erej Tribes. West of the Bongo are the Sereh and Golo, whoso territories are both bounded by the Ji or Pango tribe. The Sereh greatly resemble their neighbours the Niam- Niam, to whom they were for some time subject. They are a well-built, stout, cleanly, and industrious people. They are of a cheerful disposition, enduring fatigue, hunger, and thirst without complaint. Of all Africans, they possess the fewest domestic animals, rearing poultry alone iu their villageo. In general, the Golo resemble the Bongo in appearance and customs, although speaking an entirely different language. Their round huts have very large eaves supported on a circular row of posts, thus forming a complete verandah round the dwelling. They erect exceedingly elegit granaries in the form of a vase resting on a stool, and surmounted by a movable cover tapering to a point ornamented with {dumes. West of the Golo dwell the Kredi or Erej, who wander in small bands in the heart of the forests, and whom Schweinfurth describes as the most repulsive and least intelligent Negroes he ever met. This region, however, which drains through the Biri and other streams into the Bahr-el-Arab, is one of those where the popula- tions have become most mixed, not by free crossings, but by promiscuous intercourse, forced migrations, and the passage of troops and slave-dealers. The whole of Dar- Fertit, a name usually applied by the Arabs to this part of the country, was recently little more than a camp of slave-hunters. The affix Dem or Dwem, meaning " town," joined to so many names of places, indicates the zeriba or fortified stations main- rTjBV, ' d to spit upon ise trunk the age. t the junction zone between da and grassy ifluence, sur- ist, stands the Rek." Here -point for all of the Fpper um, a steamer !J^orth-west of Kuchuk-Ali, here are some Wau, on the the materials hr-el-6hazal. K>th bounded rs the Niam- itout, cleanly, igue, hunger, rest domestic ms, although Y large eaves ih round the e resting on a with i^umes. bands in the epulsive and ains through I the popula- intercourso, hole of Dar- was recently ing •* town," itions main- i;gggl^fevg:ssp?^3iij^~^^^^-i?^ ! 1) '• .^■■' TOPOGEAPHY. 119 tained by the slave-dealers. Dem Idris, the chief town of the Golo country, is one of the great centres of the ivory trade. When Bohndorff, Juncker's fellow-traveller, escaped northwards towards the end of 1883, elephants' tusks were here heaped up in the stores. Had the river not been blocked by the revolt. Governor Lupton valued the merchandise that he could have forwarded to Khartum at 125 tons of ivory and 16 tons of indiarubber. TOPOGRAFHY. ' t Dem Ziber, or Dem Suleiman, the chief town of the " Dwems," named after the two slave-dealers, father and son, whose power was overthrown by Gessi in 1878, is one of the largest places in the Nilotic basin above Khartum. The Egyptians have made it the capital of the province of Bahr-el-Ghazal. The king of Uganda's envoys on reaching this " great city " believed that they had arrived in England, of whose wealth and wonders they had heard so much. Its stores are stocked with European merchandise as well as with local produce, exotic fruits and vegetables acclimatised in the surrounding gardens. Here jewellers have established themselves, and sculptors here carve ivory tastefully as bracelets, sword and dagger hilts, and many other articles of vertu, and manage to keep within the law which claims elephants' tusks as the Khedive's property. Dem Suleiman is the only town of the riverain countries possessing a mosque. To the north of Fertit, Gessi chose as the garrison station on the Arab frontier *'<- town of Hiffi, situated in the vicinity of large forests near the sources of the r uns flowing towards the Bahr-el-Arab, but which run quite dry during apart of the year. The Togo'i, one of the neighbouring tribes, belonging probably to the same race as the Krej, are savage, ugly, and debased ; whilst other peoples, such as the Inderi and Shir, have features which, according to Felkin, are almost " Euro- pean," and are distinguished for their high moral qualities. The village of Oondu, about 24 miles north of Hiffi, is a citadel of the Shir, perched on the top of a hill rising some 30C feet above the plain ; a rough path winds up the side of the hill, which, however, the Arab invaders have vainly attempted to scale. The Shirs, with no other weapons than arrows and stones, have always repulsed .aeir assailants. Having remained independent and retained their bravery, they have lost nothing of their good qualities. At the sight of a stranger they leave their work and run for- ward, offering him refreshment and food. The Shir have little of the Negro type, their lips being thin and the nose shapely. They daub the body with oil and red ochre, which g^ves them a resemblance to their namesakes, the Shirs of the NUe Valley. Like the Madi and so many other peoples of the Upper Nile region, they pass a great part of theii' life in dressing their hair. Their faY'Ourite shape is that of a halo composed of lon^jp tresses. The Mandara, or Mandula, north of the Shirs in the direction of the Baggara Arabs, form the most advanced section of the Negro populations. According to Gessi, they are immigrants from Baghirmi, near Lake Tsad, who, flying from the slave-traders, took refuge in a country which, however, had beenm'ost devastated by 8— Af. ^^W®SW*^^ 114 NOBTH-EAST AFBIOA. the slavers. It was a hunting-ground where the Sultan of Darfur formerly hunted human beings to pay hjs debts. The Mandaras are nearly all Mahommedans, like their neighbours on the banks of the Bahr-el-Arab. They have allied themselves with the Baggara and Nuer to attack the Egjrptian garrisons in the riverain Rg. 37. — Inhabitants op thb Zariba Rxoioir. Soola 1 : 6,000,000. JtJmtiat ISO HUM. countries, but they were repulsed many times by Governor Lupton near the village of Mayendut. The Fertit country forms the ethnological boundary between the clothed and naked populations. This contrast, combined with those of the physical features, impresses travellers, who here seem to enter a new world. To effect its junction with the Bahr-el-Ghazal and Nile, the " Eiver of the Arabs " in its lower course winds across Negro territories. Denka tribes and peoples of the great and warlike Nuer nation occupy the swampy plains along its banks. 1^»*^-^- THE NUEB. m )rly hunted ledans, like themselves le riverain fer the village lothed and il features, lotion with urse winds rlike Nuer The Nuer. Of all the Afrioan peoples, the Nner best deserve the term of "stilted," applied to the inhabitants of frequently inundated districts. Besembling the Denka in this respect, they possess even longer legs and flatter feet, which they raise above the high grass and place cautiously on the boggy g^und. Like most Negroes of the riverain countries, they go naked ; clothes woidd greatly incommode them in these damp regions. But they take great pride in the beauty of their hair, giving it a yellowish tint by applying cinders and other substances. Those who have short hair wear wigs of cotton dyed red ; they make incisions on the forehead, while the young women -pierce the upper lip, inserting rods two or three inches long encrusted with glass beads. Like the Denkas, the Nuer, whose fields are above the flood level, possess large herds of oxen ; their most binding oath is taken on the breed of their cattle. There are also a few Nuer communities living in the midst of swamps on the floating islets of grass and reeds brought down by the river during the floods. Like the aquatic birds, they eat fish as well as roots and nelumbo seeds. Still all travellers have wondered how these half amphibious beings can settle down and bring up their families in the midst of mud and decaying vegetable substances. Their life must indeed be a hard one. They ^re in genei-al very sullen, strangers rarely receiving a gracious reception from them. -Tf-tm II I * J ' ' v\ It m CHAPTER V. 80BAT AND TAL BASLNS. f|HE Sohat, supposed by certain explorers to be the true White Nile, is occasionally even superior in volume to the main stream. It receives the drainage of an extensive basin, roughly estimated at 70,000 square miles. This vast space is still a blank on iie map, or exhibits little more than the names of tribes inserted merely on the authority of the natives and of travellers who have penetrated farthest into the interior. Debono ascended the river in a boat for over 80 miles, while a steamer advanced 140 miles beyond the confluence. Antoine d'Abbadie, Beke, and recently Schuver, have explored several tributary valleys on the western watershed of the Abyssinian highlands, and have, moreover, collected information from the Arab dealers and natives. The Yal, or Jal, which rises in the Anam and Berta highlands under the names of the Yavash or Eishar, that is " Great River," is even less known in its middle and lower course than the Sobat. The Arab traders call it the Sobat, like the much larger river flowing farther south. Its mouth is blocked by sand only during exceptionally dry seasons, such as that of 1S61. Between the Yal and the Blue Nile, for the space of more than five degrees of latitude, the White River receives only one perennial aflluent. The Nile and its two tributaries are fringed by deleb palms, tamarinds, ebony, and huge acacia forests, which though rich in gum are at present used only for the sake of the wood. One of these acacias is the " coftar " or flute-tree (^acacia fistula), whose ivory-like branches are drilled with, holes by the insects living in the gall-nuts with which they are covered. The wind rushes through these openings, producing a soft mellow soimd like that of the flute. These forests gradually disappear towards the mouth of the Yal, where the bare steppe stretches right and left, relieved only by the smoke of a few Arab camping-grounds. The Gambil and Eoma Tribes. Most of the inhabitants of the Sobat basin are of Negro stock, the Gallas being met only in comparatively small isolated communities. The first plains watered by the Baro and Garreh affluents on leaving the Abyssinian mountains are occupied ^ "bite Nile, ream. It timated at L . 1 •!•,>'; If are few other countries where nature provides so abundantly for all the wants of man. The towns on the bank follow in succession at intervals of less than half a mile, like one huge city. Seen from the river, these collections of huts, all similar in form, resemble clusters of mushrooms, the white cylinder of the building topped by a spherical grey roof heightening the illusion. In the middle of each village is a circular open space, where the villagers assemble in the evening, and seated on mats or ox-hides, smoke native tobacco in large pipes with clay bowls, and inhale the fumes of the fires lighted to keep off the musquitoes. To the trunk of the tree standing in the middle of this square are bung the drums, so that the public i X-LUL|LaJu.ij i . iijmti i .i-^, lAum THE «U1LLUK8. in on'en may immediately warn all the peoples of the surrounding towns in case of alarm. Hartniann and most other explorers of this region of the Nile consider the Shilluks as the typical representative of the group of Negro nations whoso domain is bounded south by the Bantu, east by the Oalla and other Ethiopian races, north by the Nubian and Arab tribes, and south-west by the Niam-Niam. The Shilluks are, moreover, by far the most numerous of theme groups, and have migrated most frequently to all the surrounding regions. They are said to have come from the south-east plains watered by the Sobat affluents ; since the migration, the Luoh and Diur, a branch of the same stock, have occupied a portion of the south-west territory between the Bongos and Denkas. Other of their colonists have even crossed the Somerset Nile and settled in the U-Nyoro country, under the name of Chefalu; they are now colonising along the right bank of the Nile below the Sobat, the districts of the Denka country wasted by the slavers. The population on both banks was described by "Wome as " immense," " incredibly dense ; " even on the right bank, although the least crowded, hundreds of Denka villages followed each other^ at short intervals. But they were all delivered to the flames, this region having been completely wasted in 1862 by Mohammed Her, the chief of a band of adventurers, who had allied himself with the Abu-Rof Arab tribe occupying, west of Senaar, a large tract between the two main streams. The Abu-Rof, stationed along the foot of the hills, drove the Denkas towards the Nile and Sobat, where the slave-boats were in readiness. The razzia was successful, not a soul escaping, and a district several thousand square miles in extent was thus depopulated. Qordon's regret at having contributed to spread the " benefits of civilisation " in these countries may easily be understood. " Wo want neither your pearls, your friendship, nor your protection ; we only ask you to leave us," were the words addressed to him by the delegates of a tribe he was annexing to Egypt. Although for some time in contact with the Arab Mussulmans, the Shilluks have preserved their customs and religion. Like the Ban and Denka, they have refused the garments offered them by the Khartum merchants, accepting nothing but their glass or metal trinkets ; the women alone wear a calf-skin attached to their girdle. Instead of clothes, the poor besmear themselves with ashes, and are thus recognised at a distance by their g^y colour, the real complexion of the tribe being ruddy. Like other riverain populations of the White Nile, the Shilluks ornament their hair with g^ass and feathers in the most fantastic forms, such as that of a crest, a fan, a halo, a helmet, or even a broad-brimmed hat. At sight of Schweinfurth wearing a broad felt hat of the Panama type, the natives thought he was one of their tribe, and shouted with wonder when he took off his hat. The future form of the headdress depends mostly on the fancy of the mother. Before the children are weaned they fashion the hair with clay, gum, manure, and ashes, leaving its future care to the children thei selves. The Shilluks are skilled hunters like the Baggara, not only chasing but even breeding the ostrich in their villages. The animal they fear the most is the buffalo. When unable to evade the furious beast, they throw themselves face 12!2 NOBTH-EAST AFUIOA. I' m* dnwnwunlii on tho ground and nham death ; the buffalo BnifTn round the body for Homo niinutoH und thuu ^oea awuy without touching it. Tho Shilluka boliovo in the Hupornuturul, but pay little attention to it. They worship an ancestor whom they consider to be both a god and the creator of all things ; they invoke the spirits of tho stream and wash in its holy water, but only in fear and trembling speak of tho spirits of tho dead, which hover in the air and pass into the bodies of animals and trunks of trees. The throne does not {nms in direct descent from father to son, but to the sister's child or to some other relative on the female side. Until the new king has been procli.iiied the corpse of his predecessor remains enclosed in his tokid ; his daughters are forbidden to marry, and confined in a village set apart for the purpose. ■ Topography. Tho town of Fashoda, established by the Egyptian Government in 1867, as the capital of its province of Bahr-el-Abiad, is in Shilluk territory. Although the residence of the Shilluk king, it was at that time the village of Denab, a mere group of straw huts ; it is now an imposing square fortress surrounded by palings, dep6tfi, and enclosures ; but at the beginning of 1884 it was a city of the dead, the war having caused the people to quit their dwelling^. Here the Egyptian Qovem- ment used to send those condemned to perpetual exile. Fashoda occupies a good strategic position on the left bank of the Nile, at the great bend which it describes in its northern course beyond the Bahr-ez-Zaraf and Sobat junction. The conflu- ence itself ia defended east by the post of Takuflkiyah, so-called in honour of the Khedive, and west by the village of Sobat, established officially with a view to overlook the Negro slave-dealers. Kaka, reccntl** ^\e chief slave market of the Upper Nile, is the most important place in the Shilluk country ; it lies on the left bank of the river, near the northern frontier. '.''■■i> , ' 1 ic body for licvo in the whom they u Hpiritfl of 3cak of the Diinala and her to son, Until the noloned in ;e set apart ?67, as the hough the lb, a mere >y palings, 3 dead, the n Govem- ies a good t describes "he conflu- our of the a view to cet of the m the left K*w-,^ ■ OHAPTER VL ; ABYSSINIA (ETHIOPIA). |HE name " Ethiopia," like so many other geographical terms, has changed in value during the lapse of centuries. Like Libya, it was once applied to the whole of the African continent ; it even embraced a wider field, since ' included India ord all the southern londs of the Torrid zone occ'^ied by the " mcji blackened by the sun," for such is the exact meaning of the term. ' The peoples of Ethiopia, the most remote in the world," says Homer, " dwell f .Mie tc-;Tards the rising, others towards the setting sun." The " wise men " o.cupying he TJppf Nile, . f whom the Maorobians, or " Men of Long Life," are a branch, whose man rs and customs pertain to the Golden Age, and " those virtuous muvtals whose fti(.3t8 and banquets are honoured by the presence of Jupiter himself," ■..r' called Ethif ms by Herodotus. But he applies the same term to the welters Negroes, whoso culture was scarcely superior to that of irrational beasts. However, according as our knowledge of Africa increased, the term Ethiopia became less vague, and was applied to a region of smaller extent. Now it is restricted to the uplands forming the water-parting between the Red Sea, the Gidf of Aden, and the middle Nile. This is the region known to the Arabs by the name oi Habesh, or Abyssinia, a term supj-osed to denote a mixed or mongrel population, hence reluctantly accepted by natives acquainted with Arabic. The people occupying the plateau traversed by the Blue Nile and other large Nilotic affluents, conscious of a glorious past, proudly designate themselves aa " Itiopiavian," that is, Ethiopians. Nevertheless, the term Abyssinia, like that of Gem., t ", and so many others that the people themselves did not give to their counii- , has acquired amongst foreigners the force of custom, and must be employed to avoid misunderstandings. Belief, Evn.m:; Population of Abyssinia. The shiftings of frf>atier caused by the fortunes of wars and conquests have long prevented, and still prevent, these terms, Ethiopia or Habesh, from conveying a clear political signification. Now applied merely to the lofty chain )f mountains whose coatral depression is flooded by Lake Tana ; now extended v all the sur- 184 N0ETH.EA.8T AFRICA. *i ml rounding lands westwards to the Nilotic plains, and eastwards to the shores of the Red Sea, in its ordinary usage the term Abyssinia is specially employed in a political sense, its limits being indicated by the authority of the "King of Kings." The word Ethiopia has a still wider sense. From the geographical standpoint its natural frontiers are traced by the elevations, which at the same time serve as boundary lines between the surrounding floras, faunas, and populations. Speaking generally, the whole triangular space, rising to an elevation of over 3,000 feet, between the Red Sea and the Nile, may be called Ethiopia proper. On all sides the exterior escarpments of the plateau indicate the zone of transition between the .Ethiopian and surrounding lands. To the north they consist of those spurs pro- jecting to the neighbourhood of the Red Sea, from which they are separa.ted by a narrow strip of coastlands. Eastwards the rugged Tigr^, Lasta, and Shoa high- lands are abruptly limited by uneven plains stretching seawards, which appear to have formerly been partly submerged. Wadies and marshes skirt the foot of the hills, like those channels which encircle the foot of recently upheaved rocks. To the west the declivities are less precipitous ; the highlands, breaking into ridges and headlands, fall in successive stages merging at last in the undulating plains, but reappearing here and there in isolated crags and masses in the midst of the alluvial strata. To the south the natural boundaries of Ethiopia are less distinctly defined, the plateau extending in this direction towards the uplands of the Masai country. Still, depressions are known to exist in this region affording easy com- munication from the Nile Valley through the Sobat to the lands draining through the Juba to the Indian Ocean. Until these little-known regions have been thoroughly explored, it will bt' impossible to accurately calculate the extent of Ethiopia in its wider sense. All we know is that, in their present political limits, Abyssinia and Shoa cover an area of about 80,000 square miles, or considerably less than half that of France. The Eaffa country and part of the regpion occupied by the Gallas and other tribes, as far as the water-parting between the Sobat and Juba, should be added to these countries as natural geographical dependencies. The lowlands, ancient political dependencies of the kingdom of Ethiopia, extend east of the Abyssinian mountains towards the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden over an area nearly equal to that of Abyssinia properly so-called. The whole of the region comprised between the Nile, the Takka steppes, the seacoast from Suakin to Zeila, and the irreg^ular water-parting between the basins of the Awash, the Blue Nile, the Sobat, and the tributaries of the Indian Ocean, has a superficial area exceeding 240,000 square miles. Its population may be approximately estimated- at about 9,000,000. \ Historic RETRosPEcrr. Separated from the surrounding countries by the relief of its plateaux and moun- tains, Ethiopia also differs from them in its climate, vegetation, fauna, inhabitants, and history. In this vast continent, where the people elsewhere intermingle like the waters of the sea, it rises like a vast highland citadel, constituting a world apart. mSTOBIO BETEOSPEOT. '68 of the ►yed in a f Kings." tandpoint e serve as Speaking J.OOO feet, all sides itween the spurs pro- ted by a tioa high- appear to oot of the "ooka. To ito ridges ng plains, dst of the distinctly the Masai easy com- ^ through it will bi- mae. All er an area nee. The r tribes, as I to these t political mountains to that of tween the irregular ^t, and the 00 square 0. md moun- babitants, ie like the rid apart. The Abyssinians have had an historic evolution different from that of the nations surging round the foot of their highlands, like the waves dashing against the cliffs. Wars and revolutions have been developed below them without affecting them. But if Ethiopia seems to have lived an independent existence amid its African neigh- bours, it offers on the other hand a development singularly analogous to that of temperate Europe. It is very remarkable that the Abyssinians alone, of all other African peoples, should have accepted and retained a religion which prevails under divers forms amongst European peoples. Not only its religious dogmas, but also its political institutions and usages, present a certain resemblance to those of mediaeval Europe. In certain respects Abyssinia is an African Europe. But for many centuries the relations between Ethiopia and the countries north of Africa have been few and transitory. The Greeks were not brought into contact with the Abyssinian highlanders till the time of the Ptolemies, when the open ports on the neighbouring coast facilitated the exchange of merchandise and the propaga- tion of the Hellenic religion, as is attested by the inscriptions found by explorers in many parts of Ethiopia. Christianity and its predecessor, Judaism, were introduced into the country by the same routes. Numerous traditions have survived from the period of Greek influence, and at the present day Ethiopians, the statements of travel- lers notwithstanding, are still inclined to believe that the Greeks are the most po>/erful nation in Europe. Shortly after their conversion, however, all relations ceased between them and the Byzantines, and it was through the Arabs that vague reports reached Europe of their African co-religionists. Even at the time of the Crusades a report was circulated that the King of Ethiopia was coming to the help of his Christian brethren. However, the statements made about these African Catholics were more legendary than historical, and Ethiopia, like the Mongolian plateaux, was supposed to have its " Prester John," under whom the happy populations were said to live in a second Golden Age. For neariy a thousand years all direct intercourse between Europe and Ethiopia was suspended, and not resumed till about 1450, through the trade opened by the Italians with India. If Bruce is to be credited, the Venetian Branoalione held theological discussions with the Abyssinian priests about the middle of the fifteenth century. Later on a Portuguese, Pedro Covillao, accompanied by a second Brancalione, succeeded in reaching the plateau and the court of the Ethiopian king in 1487 ; but he was not permitted to return to his own country. At the same time Marcos, an Ethiopian pilgrim, journeyed from Jerusalem to Lisbon. In the following century the Portuguese penetrated to the plateau, where they founded religious and military establishments in every direction. Relations with Europe, however, were not yet thoroughly cemented, when the Portuguese priests were accused of aspiring to political power and expelled from the country. They were no doubt followed in 1699 by the French physician, Ponoet, invited by the King of Abyssinia to his court. 126 N0ETH-EA8T AFBIOA. ' Modern Exploration. But seventy years passed between Poncet's short visit and that of the Scotch- man Bruce, with whom begins the era of modem exploration. Since his time the country has been traversed by many European travellers, naturalists, traders, adventurers, soldiers, and missionaries, and European military expeditions have even been made into the heart of Abyssinia. Commercial relations are rapidly increasing, and many of the plateau districts have already been pointed out by explorers as a future Held of emigration for Europeans. But it might be doubted whether the two races would continue to live on friendly terms, without the conflicts and wars of extermination generally proceeding the fusion of different peoples. Certain parts of Ethiopia are already much better known than any other African region lying beyond the colonies and maritime regions under European influence. Since Bruoe's visit, the country has been thoroughly studied by explorers, such as Salt, Riippel, Rochet, Ferret, and Galinier ; Beke, Sapeto, Erapf, Combes, and Tamisier ; Lejean, Munzinger, Baffray, Bohlfs, and Heuglin, who have brought back maps, charts and observations of every description. Moreover Antoine d'Abbadie, during his twelve years' stay in Ethiopia, made a geodetic survey of the country, by a rapid but accurate method, hardly inferior in precision to the lengthy and delicate system of triangulation usually adopted in Europe. On d'Abbadie's map the Bed Sea coast is connected witn the moun- tains of the plateau as far as Kaffa by a continuous series of triangles, fixing the latitude and longitude of about nine hundred points. The map is covered with a close network of geodetic lines and routes, the names of many localities being inserted with considerable accuracy. Detailed surveys were also taken by the British stafi officers during the expedition of 1868 from Adulis Bay to the highland fortress of Magdala. Abyssinia Proper. Most European explorers who have visited the Ethiopian uplands have penetrated from the east, where these highlands present the most imposing aspect. Above the samhar or mudun, a naked plain separating the coast from the plateau, the outer terraces of the escarpment are seen piled up in domes and pyramids, barren rocks or verdant slopes, whose shar] hazy crests seem to merge in a single irregular range. At the mouth of the ravines which cleave the rocky masses with their parallel furro^vs, the argillaceous plains are succeeded by rolled stones and boulders, with here and there a solitary tree, or patches of scrub or herbage visible in the cavities occasionally flooded by the tropical rains. StUl higher up rise rocky or wooded slopes and steep precipices, round which wind narrow and dangerous paths. When the traveller at last reaches the summit he does not find himself on a ridge, as he might have expected, but on almost level pasture- lands interspersed with tall juniper-trees. At a height of from 7,000 to 9^000 feet the edge of the plateau stands out in relief, on one side overlooking the grey ^"TI-.TEfiB*"^"' u. ii^^iRimwuiwp ' 5 Scotoh- his time 1, traders, ons have d rapidly d out by i doubted ;hout the different ny other European udied by , Supeto, Heuglin, scription. ^ made a r inferior Y adopted he moun- ixing the ad with a ies being m. by the ly to the nds have ag aspect, e plateau, pyramids, n a single Icy masses led stones r herbage higher up irrow and does not (1 pasture- ) to 9,000 J the grey ABYSSINIA PEOPEE. 127 and naked plain, and on the other, the strange " chess-board" of the interior with Fig. 40 —Chief Routes of Abybkinian Explorbbs. Scale 1 : 8,000^000.' IttMtkriN of AiiiUdne d'Abbadie. its irregular ternice-hmds overtopped by jagged cliffs and cleft asunder by deep gorges. las NOETH-EAST AFRICA. The Abyssinian Plateau. On the whole, the Ethiopian plateau consists of numerous distinct table-lands, like the polyhedric prisms formed by the dessication of the clayey soil of plains exposed to the action of heat. These table-lands, intersected by precipices and surmounted by crags, stand at different elevations. Some of them form entire provinces, with towns and numerous populations ; others, the so-called amba, are mere blocks or quadrangular masses some 800 or 1,000 feet high, similar to the druffs or " inaccessibles " of Southern India, or the isolated crags of Saxon Switzerland. . In eastern Ethiopia the origin of these ambas is doubtless due to the disintegration of a thick layer of red or grejrish sandstone, cleft into vertical masses, and revealing here and there stratas of lower schistose and crystaline formations. In the interior, and especially towards the west, where volcanic lands prevail, most of the natural cliffs consist, not of sandstone, like those of the eastern plateaux of India and of Saxony, but of lava, and terminate in basaltic columns, some disposed in converging clusters or else forming colonnades Like the temples of the Acropolis. These crystaline rocks, whose upper terrace is large enough to contain arable tracts and form the source of rivers, have for the most part served as strongholds, where many a tribe or horde of robbers has remained for years besieged and out off from the rest of the world. Other ambas have been chosen by the monks as the sites of their monasteries, and such holy places often serve as sanctuaries to those fleeing from justice or oppression. Lastly, the smaller basalt columns are frequently used as prisons for the g^reat personages who have iiicurred the displeasure of the reigning sovereign. In Eastern Ethiopia the general face of the plateau is more broken and out up into more secondary plateaux and crystaline rocks than in the west. The escarp- ments of most of the isolated mountain masses slope more gradually westwards. They thus reproduce in miniature the general aspect of the whole region, which terminates abruptly towards the Bed Sea, and slopes gradually towards the Nilotic plains. This general incline, however, can only be determined by accurate instru- ments, the aspect of the platejau and of the surrounding ranges being too irregular to enable the observer to detect its primitive outline. The ambas stand out at various elevations in bold relief against the blue sky like citadels and towers. Lower down, the verdant base of the plateau breaks into abrupt precipices, whose walls present from a distance the aspect of regular quadrangular lines. On these harder rocks rest the soft foundations, here scored by avalanches of falling rocks, elsewhere clothed with verdure. The Abyssinian landscapes, like those of the Bocky Mountains, consist of superimposed terrace-lands and vast strata of monumental aspect. Near Magdala the eastei a edge of the Talanta plateau is said to terminate abruptly in a vertical wall of basaltic pillars over three thousand feet high. The Ewallas and Biver Gorges. The height oi the Ethiopian plateaux varies greatly, presenting between the Simen range in the north and those of Lasta and Gojam in the south-east and .^.. — ^^. . •••■ table-landfi, il of plains eoipices and 'orm entire 1 amba, are milar to the of Saxon >tleB8 due to into vertical orystaline ■are Toloanic those of the 9 in basaltic ides like the ■ace is large 'or the most as remained ambas have holy places Lastly, the personages L and cut up The escarp- y westwards, 'egion, which 8 the Nilotic iurate instru- too irregular stand out at and towers, t precipices, ir lines. On es of falling like those of ist strata of lateau is said ree thousand between the mth-east and NORTHERN ABYSSINIA. CBBTfln* •MiMbP t0M*(/. ot»acMin>. »ww SMOim HEW -rORK, D. APPLETON &.C9 ■<*p»" THE ABYSSINIAN PLATEAU. 129 west, a mean altitude of about 8,000 feet. All the regfions attaining or exceeding this height are called dega, a term analogous to the Persian sarhad and Arab nejd. Below the altitude of 6,000 feet, the intermediate valleys and gorges dividing the plateau, excavated by the mountain torrents to various depths, take the name of kwalla, kolla, or kulla, a zone of " hot lands " corresponding to the ghermair of Persia, or to the tehamas of Arabia. Between these two zones stretches the vdina- degd, or temperate region. In many places the rugged escarpments present a sudden contrast between the degas and the kwallas, the difference of their relief being heightened by that of their climate and vegetation. The cataracts, such as that of Pavezut, near Debra-Tabor, fall either in a single sheet or through a suc- cession of rapids from one zone to another. Most of the partial granite pr basalt masses of the plateau have outer walls formed of. cliffs and superimposed talus, which give the hills the appearance of step-pyramids; but some of these kwallas are little more than fissures or gorges, like the North American canons. Such chasms appear to be but a stone's throw across ; their true size, however, can only Kg. 41.— PBOFiiiB or Abtmimia from Eabt to Wbsi. 8«ae 1 : ifiOOfiOO. Tbe Male or heigkto is MO ttasM lng«r ihu that of diibuuMa. I 6 MOm. be seen on descending into the abyss, walking for hours on the edge of giddy precipices, crossing the torrents at the bottom, and then scaling their abrupt sides. The defiles are occasionally blocked by masses of rock swept down by the mountain torrents, and presenting serious obstacles to the local traffic The most remark- able ravines occur along the eastern edge of the plateau, where the total fissure exceeds 6,600 feet, measured from the summit of the degas down to the sea-level. Nowhere else can a more convincing proof be observed of the erosive action of running waters. The two walls of certain gorges, rising nearly vertically within a few feet of each other to a height of some hundreds of feet, represent an erosion of hard rock amounting to at least ten thousand five hundred million cubic feet. Nevertheless, the waters have regulated the fall of the channel, which averages not more than one in forty yards. This incline is easily ascended, but several of the defiles remain blocked for months together, by the mountain torrents; every year new paths have to be formed across the debris, while some have had to be entirely abandoned. The route to Eumaili, through which t^e English army marched to the Abyssinian plateau, had probably not been occupied by a military force since 9— AF, — . — — —- '- ': ■■■,1. »■: V, , :■•<; 3:,.-«?^. ^^^^■:.^:-^ >fl' ^?^-%^ r^.\i.^ ^t^^ ■4|^^»^ r^^V ""•^3 ""'^ 1 f^''' •" ^ f^-~ '^^^ ' ' ■; ,' ' '' . t *i^ ^msMi ■ I '^-^^ • V ' V% .''"i ^#-^:^^/ ■>Siv^S. .*I:'i^^S«l^«iiii^i3 the time of the Greeks. Ethiopia is thus divided by gorges into numerous natural MBfiaaBEMVam •• ^^^ Ij r jHil^M BiBBr"" THE ^OBTHKKN U1(»11I«VND8. lUl €« ^M ^-«^ seotionn. Instead of fucilitating communication, uh in the lowlnurln, tho Ahyflninian rivers become ho many defiles difficult to traverse, and often completely cutting off two conterminous provinces for weeks and months at a time. Orographic System. erous natural From a geological point of view, the Ethiopian highlands present a striking resemblance to those of Arabia facing them. The rocky formations are identical, and consequently the mountains have much the same outlines, tho same general aspect, and almost the same vegetation ; while the populations, of common origin on both plateaux, have been developed in almost identical surroundinrv^'. The back- bone of the whole Ethiopian plateau, still appearing on some old maps under the name of " Spina Mundi," is formed by the eastern edge of the mountains over- looking the low coastlands of the Red Sea. For a distance of about 600 nules this edge, precipitous on one side and developing a gentle incline on the other, runs north and south nearly in the direction of the meridian. West of this range, which also forms the water-parting, the whole of the plateaux gradually slope towards the Nile, as indicated by the kwallas through which flow the waters of the Mareb, Takkazeh, Beshilo, Abai, Jemna, and their affluents. On the eastern slope the escarpments are intersected at intervals by the deep valleys of the wadies rising on the plateau, which thus affords an accessible route to the heart of Ethiopia ; but one river alone, the Awash, rises far west of the chain. The valley of this watercourse describes a regular semioircle south of the Shoa highlands, thus forming a natural barrier between the Abyssinian and southern Galla territory. The Northern Highlands. In its northern section the axis of the rang^ is scarcely sixty miles broad, including the spurs and the lateral ridges. Its lowest eminences overlook the plain of Tokar from the south, where the river Barka loses itself in a marshy delta. Rising in abrupt terraces, it presents a steep face to the coast-Une, which is here indented by inlets and broken into rugg^ headlands ; the jagged crests leave only a narrow passage at their base, blocked by rocks and interrupted by wadies interspersed with quagmires. This region would prove an Ethiopian Thermopylae for an army endeavouring to reach the mountain regions Jerusalem. The crest of this mountain is u chaotic mass of rooks of all sizes, which might be supposed duo to vulcanic eruptions, but which are indebted for their present form to slow meteoric action. These rocks, lying obliquely on each other, form the arched roofs of numerous caves, wliich huvu been artificially worked into dwellings and in many places connected by galleries. One has even been hewn into a monastery and a church, which is annually visited by thousands of pilgrims from every {wrt of Abyssinia. South of Keren stands the Isad Amba, or " White Fortress," another rock famous in the religious annals of Abyssinia. Thin Fig. 44.— ThS SlMIN HlOHLANM. ■mU 1 1 l,00(S00O. iS^SSS^ . ■-■""• ' "■■' s^' J"^^«k ' 4," f ■Ej- ,i V ii^-^ 15' 50 .'3' is: 50 •5-. '^mmm "^•r':w#^ltw^^ ■i i^JE |^^^H^^HjffiSf|gk|fi^ 1 i^'V i^* @l ^B^BJBBTJi^dr*.^ tq[.«riK.r»i'd the llainaHon hivuB, haa Ikhmi iM)rfotwet >'<(/' nnd Adiui to i , ( . , . , height of ul^mt tOl •', i- ^ h»iiUk1 to pruRont tho upjHiumi -, ni a orator hut recently extinct, although Ilohlf follow- ing tho luimo route, failed to discover it. To tho Houth, on tho oaatem edge of the plateau, riao the iaolated conea of other voloanooB. 8ome of the Tigr^ creata are veritable mountaina, not merely in ubaoluto altitude, but alao in their eleva* tion relative to the aurrounding plaina. Thus eaat of Adua, the cleft cone of Soma- yata attains a height of 10,306 feet, or over 3,000 feet above the town occupying a depreaaion of the plateau at ita boae. Eaatwarda, near the outer ledge of the uplands, are other lofty hills, one of which, Aleqwa, riaea to a height of 11,260 feet. To the west, between the Mareb and Tak* kazeh, the plateau gradually falla, the relative heighta of the moimtaina dimin- ishing in proportion. The loftieat headland of northern Abyssinia is separated from Tigr4 in the north and east by the semicircular gorge of the Takkazeh, while the affluents of this great river encircle the plateau on the south-west, thus isolating the Simen (Samen, Semen, Semien, or Semieneh), that is the "northern" or "cold region." The mean height of its escarpments ez- oeeds 10,000 feet, whilst the surrounding valleys of the Balagas to the south and of the Takkazeh to the north, are respectively 5,000 and 6,000 feet lower. Hence the waters flowing from the snowy Simen \ uplands have a very rapid course, in many places broken by cascades. One of these cataracts Heuglin describes as falling some 1,600 feet into a chasm which appears to have been a crater partly destroyed by erosion. Like most of the other fragments of the Abyssinian plateau properly so- called, the Simen uplands consist entirely of volcanic, basaltic, trachytic, phonolithic. 39° 10 E . of Greenwich 5t)°40' ,80 Miles. ) vory vi'in* coordiiig to IV Hamilton 1 Adiia to u '■< «*llt'^^,^'^ THE EASTERN BOBDEB RANGE. 186 rocks and pumice, although their snowy peaks contain no craters. Till recently the Ras Dajun, probably over 15,000 feet, was considered the highest poiii iu this district, but this distinction belongs probably to that of Buahit, or Abba-Yared. The highest peaks of these two mountains, rivalling Mont Rosa or Mont Blanc of the European Alps, are streaked with snow, and according to the natives, snow rests on them throughout the year. The aspect of the Simen highlands is scarcely 80 imposing as that of the Alps. They rise little more than from 1,500 to 2,500 feet above the base of the plateau ; but at the escarpments of the terrace lands, from which they are separated by deep gorges, these mountains, with their fantastic towers, peaks, and successive vegetations of every climate clothing their flanks, stand out in all their sublimity. From the pass of Lamalmon on the Gondar route, the traveller on turning a rock comes suddenly on this amazing prospect, and utters an involuntary cry of admiration at the sight of the snowy peaks piercing the clouds. The EASTfeRN Bordbr Range. East of Tigre, the chain forming the eastern escarpment of Abyssinia is continued regularly north and south, interrupted by breaches some 8,000 or 10,000 ieet high, which would facilitate communication with the plains on the Red Sea coast were the country not occupied by the dreaded Afar tribes. This border chain maintains its normal elevation for a distance of about 180 miles, but at certain points it merges in a rugged upland plain whose depressions are flooded by lakes such as Ashangi, Haitk, and Ardibbo. Eastwards the mountainous tableland of Zebul, some 3,000 feet high, and dominated by peaks rising from 1,000 to 2,000 feet higher, advances far into the country of the Somali. Although their escarp- ments are so precipitous^ and so densely clothed with matted vegetation, as to render them ahnost inaccessible, the Zebul heights are not to be compared with the majestic Abyssinian mountains. The Bekenna, or Berkona, an affluent of the Awash, rising in the watershed near the sources of the Takkazeh and Beshilo, separates the border chain from the Argobba, a lateral ridge which projects far into the lowlands, forming in the south-west the last epur of the Abyssinian highlands. The line of transverse depressions, indicated on the coast by the Gulf of Tajurah, and in the interior by the bed of Lake Tana, is well defined on the border terrace by a nucleus of diverging valleys constituting the main point of radiation of all the Abyssinian rivers. Near the hot spring forming its source rise other tributary rivers of the Takkazeh ; the chief affluents of the Beshilo or Beshlo, which with the Abai forms one of the main headstreams of the Blue Nile, also originate in these mountains, while their eastern slopes give birth to many tributaries of the Awash and of the Gwalima, or Golima, which latter finally runs dry in the plains of the Mara. In the vicinity of Lake Haik, east of the fortress of Magdala, the range is crossed by a pass said to be considerably less than 7,000 feet high, thus forming the 1 S*-i^^ ■■-H-^^ijil^^pftti^™***"* m NOETH-BAST ATEIOA. lowest breach in the border chain of Eastern Abyssinia. But on this side, where the regions are broken up into distinct fragments by the deep river gorges, many mountains attain a height inferior only to those of the Simen and Gojam. Thus east of Lake Ashangi, on the almost isolated upland province of Lasta, which is almost surrounded by the Takkazeh and Tzellari rivers, Mounts Biala and ' Gavzigivla exceed 12,600 feet ; while the heights of Abuna, Yosef, and Imaraha, not far from the source of the Takkazeh, attain an elevation of over 13,000 feet. South of the Takkazeh an irregular plateau stretches westwards, terminating in Mount Guna, one of the highest Abyssinian summits (14,000 feet). Its western spur, sloping towards Lake Tana, forms the famous Debra-Tabor, or " Mount Tabor," site of the present military capital of Abyssinia. To the north rise the Beg- hemeder Mountains, beyond which are the still little-known Belessa highlands, connected with those of "Wagara and Ewalla Wagara, the whole series forming a successive series of terraces towards the Nilotic plains. Centhal and Western Highlands. . i West of the Galla Wollo plateau, supposed to be a vast lava field, the slopes incline gradually towards the Blue Nile, interrupted, however, by secondary chains. Abruptly intersected southwards by the deep semicircular gorge containing ^he waters of the Abai, or Blue Nile, the plateau recommences more to the west, rising in terraces up to the Gojam Mountains, which, jointly with those of Simen and Lasta, form the culminating points of Abyssinia. The chief range of this mountainous province extends in a semicircle, concentric to that described by the Blue Nile ; its highest crest, the Talba Waha, probably exceeds 12,000 feet. But although one of the peaks takes the name of Semayata, that is " Heaven -kissing," it does not appear tc '>e ever covered with snow ; nor do any of the summits in this region, between 11° and 12° of latitude, seem to reach the snow-line. Like most other Abyssinian ranges, the Talba Waha Mountains fall in steep escarpments east and north, whilst on the west they slope gently towards the territory of the Gumis and Bertas. The rest of the plateau is broken in the north and nortb-west by watercourses into countless fragments, forming a suc- cession of steps overlooked by a few pyramids of a relatively slight elevation. The Waidebba height, in the north-west angle of Lake Tana, exceeds 7,000 feet. The whole of this region is of volcanic origin, terminating towards the lowlands in abrupt masses with vertical walls from 80 to 100 feet high, surmounted by basaltic columns. Beyond the promontory of Rus-el-Fil, that is, " Elephaxit Cape," skirted by the river Rahad on the south-west, the level steppe presents an extraordinary appearance, from the fantastic crags, peaks and needles covering it. xhe most advanced of these remarkable formations is the completely isolated granite mass of Gana ov Jebel Arang, whose sides and summit to a height of nearly 2,000 feet are clothed Mrith large forest-treos, including the baobab, which here reaches its northern limit. ide, where ges, many m. Thus , which is Biala and . Imaraha, 1,000 feet, inating in item spur, It Tabor," the Beg- highlands, s forming THE ABYSSINIAN SEABOARD.— LAKE ALALBED. The Abyssinian Seaboard. 187 the slopes secondary lar gorge nces more intly with The chief ic to that ly exceeds ita, that is aor do any ) reach the 11 in steep awards the ken in the ing a suc- r elevation. 7,000 feet, e lowlands Qounted by " Elephant pe presents es covering ely isolated bt of nearly which here Beyond the Abyssinian plateaux in the vicinity of the Red Sea rise such pro- montories and isolated headlands as the Gadam, or Gedem, formerly an insular rock, but which now forms a promontory between the Gulf of Massawah and Adulis Bay, terminating in an abrupt incline. This granite mass, although visible from Massawah, has not yet been accurat«ly measured, the estimates of travellers varying from 2,700 to 3,300 feet ; but d'Abbadie has geodetically determined its highest point at over 5,000 feet. The Buri headland, bounding Adulis Bay on the east, also terminates in the imposing volcanic cone of Awen, the Hurtow Peak of the English maps, which, although apparently extinct, is said by the natives still to emit steam and sulphureous vapours. Copious hot springs flow from its sides, while thousands of jets at a temperature of 168° F. bubble up amidst the surf on the beach. South of the Buri peninsula are. other irregular hills composed of volcanic rocks completely separated from the moimtains of Abyssinia proper. But a still active volcano, known to the Afars under the name of Artali, or Ortoaleh, that is, " Smoky Moimtain," rises at the extremity of a spur of the Abyssinuin plateaux, south-west of Hanfila (Hamfaleh) Bay, att'^sting the existence of underground energy, of which 80 few examples still occur on the African coast. It is described by Hilde- brandt, the only explorer who has approached its crater, as a cone of blackish lava seamed with crevasses, and ejecting dense volumes of whitish vapour. In its vicinity stands another aow quiescent sulphureous mountain, from the deposits in its crater known as Eibrealeh, or "Sulphur Mountain;" whilst farther north, near the salt plains, ave the isolated solfataras of Delol, or Dallol, whence the Abyssinian highlanders obtain the sulphur with which they manufacture their gunpowder. Finally, to the east, near the small harbour of Edd, a chaotic mass of solfataras and craters gives the district the appearance of a storm-tossed sea. Sea- farers speak of lavas ejected within "a day's march " of Edd, especially in 1861, but their origin is unkno>/n, unless they proceed from the already mentioned Mount Ortoaleh, which lies, however, not at a day's journey, but fully sixty miles inland. These volcanoes are greatly feared by the natives, who believe them to be the abode of evil spirits ; under the guidance of their wizards they sacrifice a cow to them, but directly the animal is placed on the flaming pyre they run away, lest evil sho^ild befall them if they saw the spirits devouring their prey. Lake Alalbed. Although Ortoaleh is not situated on the sea-coast, it rises above the district of Bahad, a lacustrine plain which was formerly a marine inlet. This depression, which Munzinger called Ansali, from an isolated mound rising in its midst, stretches over a superficial area of about 1,000 square miles at a mean level of some 200 feet below the Red Sea. This plain, a miniature " ghor " similar to that flooded by the Jordan and the Dead Sea, is almost entirely surrounded by a sinuous belt of i 188 NORTH-EAST AFEIOA. gypsum cliffs, here and there intersected hy wadies. Their summits are crowned with feathery ditm palms, and frorr their sides flow perennial springs. A verdant circle thus surrounds this desert waste, where nothing is visible but a few acacias anu brushwood. At some distance from the cliffs are saline efflorescences, which become gradually solidified towards the middle of the plains, where they acquiro the consistency of slabs some two feet thick. Here and there they present a greyish tesselated appearance, the interstices being filled with dazzling white crystals. At the lowest level of the depression, between the Ansali promontory and Mount Ortoaleh, are collected the waters of Lake Alalbed, or AUolebed, whose size varies according to the quantity of water brought down by the torrents. Its mean depth is said scarcely to exceed 40 inches. The dessication of the old bay of Fig. 46.— Laxi of Alalbbo. SeaU 1 : 1,«W,000. 39-50' L t of GreanwicK 40* 30' ■ 80Mil<». Ansali may be explained by a gradual upheaval of the coast west of the Red Sea, as well as on the east side in Arabila. The coral banks and recent shells found at the north of the plain attest the presence of marine wate-s on the now upheaved depression between the plain of Ragad and Auwakil Bay. The rivers flowing from the Abyssinian chain arc not sufficiently copious to repair the loss by evaporation, and thus the old lake, formerly of some extent, has gradually become a shallow swamp. The Taltals, who inhabit the surrounding district, assure the Abyssinians, possibly to protect themselves from their visits, that Chfj lake occasionally "walks away" from its old bed in search of a new one; p;ad woe to the caravans overtaken by this sudden inundation! Besides, even at some distance from the lake, travellers run the risk of sinking into the treacherous soil, and whole companies of men and beasts are said to have thus disappeared. pi^as». DAHLAK ISLAND.— CLIMATE. 189 However, the banks of the lake are traversed in safety by hundreds of Taltals, who here procure nearly all the salt required for the Abyssinian market, and the little salt bricks used as a small currency in southern Abyssinia. According to Munzinger, they procure from the bed of this lake some thirty millions of bricks annually, equivalent at Antalo, on the plateau, to a sum of £320,000. Dahlak Island. ".''''.''' The islands of the neighbouring coast, notably that of Dahlak, the largest in the Red Sea, which shelters Masaawah Bay from the east, are partly of coral and partly of volcanic origin. They are skirted by headlands and lava streams, and in many places the land is intersected by deep crevices, apparently due to sub- terranean disturbances. The two walls of these chasms do not always stand at the same, elevation, in some instances showing discrepancies of some fifty feet. During the rainy season the water collects in these hollows, and when evaporated verdant meadows spring up from the damp soil, contrasting pleasantly with the bare rocks surroimding them. The island of Dahlak is subject to earthquakes, which the natives say are caused by the movements of the " bull who supports the world.*!' Hot springs are found in the interior, in which fish are said to live, although their temperature exceeds 172" F. Climate. \ '■■ ' ) Abysdnia, whose summits rise above the snow-line, while their base sinks to the le^l of the Torrid zone, naturally presents every diversity of climate according to the altitude and aspect of its uplands. On the slopes of the plateau± and mountains, the seasons are diversely distribtited, continually overlapping th« net- work pf isothermal lines so regularly placed on our. climatological maps of Abyssinifi. How often have travellers, facing the bitter cold wind of the plateaux, succunlbed i* that frosty sleep which ends in death ! On military expeditions whole battdions have he&n frozen whilst crossmg these snowy passes, and d'Abb^die quotes a chronide, which btates that a whole army thvis perished in Lasta., But at the bottom jf the narrow ambas death is more frequently caused rather by the intense heat, for under the summer sun these gorges become verit- able furnaces, the soil glowing at times with a heat of some 190° to 200° F. The air is generally calm in these apparently closed ravines ; but if the equilibrium is suddenly disturbed, a raging tempest tf'ura up the valley, the air soon returning to its former tranquillity. The absence of regula: currents sweeping away the impuri- ties of the air, renders the amhas extremely dangeroiis to traverse. Before or after the rainy season they must be crossed rapidly, in order to reach the slopes above the fever zone. Although exposed to an almost equal degree cf heat, the plains bordering the Bed Sea are much more salubrious, and are dangerous only in those years when the rainfall is excessivt. But these extremes of heat and cold are unknown in the central districts, where ■i 140 NOBTH-EAST AFRICA. nearly all the urban populations arc concentrated, with the exception of the towns that have sprung up round the mountain strongholds, or places of pilgrimage. The inhabited zone — that is, the vo'ina-dega, or " wine region," between the degas and Fig. 47. — I^TEHMEDIATE AbYSBINIAN i'LATEAOX AND VaLLBTB. fioiUe 1 : 8.800.000. KwOU. Vidoa-dega. Dega. ______ 00 MUes. kwallas — lies mainly at a height of from 6,000 to 8,000 feet. At these elevations the mean temperature corresponds to that of the Mediterranean sea-coast, with this difference, that the changes of season are much leas noticeable. As the plateaux ■^— '■-«srtiJ!e»»>WW (r-^;- ^^•^ ' "^ t ^ -^-'ftnar** f j.fea'4^ T -T" le towns ^. The gas and levatione with this plateaux CLIMATE. m lie within the tropics, the sun's rays maintain their intensity throughout the year, the discrepancies hetween winter and summer heing very slight, and due mainly to the purity of the air and density of the clouds. As in the West Indies and in all countries suhjeot to regular monsoons, the Abyssinian year is regulated by the appearance and disappearance of the rains. . ' >: The rainy season varies in time and duration according tn the height, latitude, and position of the various provinces. Some regions have even two rainy seasons, being lands of transition belong^g at once to two meteorological domains. The southern Abyssinian uplands have two winters, the first commencing in July, when the sun is nearly vertical above the soil, and ending in September ; the second and shorte- falling in January, February, or March, when the belt of clouds formed at the zone of contact between the trade-winds and polar currents is deflected south- wards. In the central region the winter, or azmara, commences usually in April, continuing, with a few interruptions, till the end of September ; but at the north- west base of the mountains, in the Bogos, Galabat, Gedaref, and Senaar provinces, this rainy season is broken into two, one beginning in April or May, the other, accompanied by tiemendous downpours, lasting throughout the months of July, August, and September. The rains, brought by the wind blowing from the Bed Sea or Indian Ocean, fall nearly always in the afternoon, accompanied by tempests, but soon clear off, leaving the sky unclouded during the night and following morn- ing. On the eastern slope of the mountains, however, the seasons are reversed, the rains brought by the north wind falling in winter, which lasts from November to March. The African coast of the Red Sea lies within the zone of the Mediterranean winter rains, whilst those of Arabia, the interior of Egypt, and Upper Abyssinia belong to a different climatic system. Certain mountains situated on the boundary of the two zones are alternately beaten by winter and summer rains, and the Abys- sinian shepherds have but to go round the mountain to find, according to the season, the herbage necessary for their flocks or land ready for culture. During this period the air enveloping the lowland plains is excessively damp, the hygro- meter never indicating a less proportion than GO per cent., while the air of the plateaux is, on the contrary, usually dry. In the distiicts where the annual rainfall has been roughly estimated, it is found to vary from two to three inches yearly. But the discrepancy must be much greater in some upland valleys, where the rainclouds are driven together by the winds. Here hailstorms are very frequent. Floodings are known to be extremely dangerous in valleys surmounted by precipitous and barren rocks ; but on the eastern ledges of the Abyssinian border ranges these sudden deluges rushing through steeply inclined watercourses are even more dangerous than elsewhere. During the rainy season all communication ceastis between the plateaux, which are divided one from the other by deep kwallas. In the plains of Samhar the aaravans, journeying through sand, saUne clays, and lavas, are occasionally stopped by the intolerable heat reflected from the earth or rocks, or else by the sandy whirlwinds of the kharif, or columns of red sand sweeping over the desert. 142 NOBTH-EAST Ai'BlCA. Fr-ORA. Thanks to its variety of climate, the flora of Abyssinia is extremely diversified. The two chief zones of vegetation are naturally those of the upland plateaux and lowland valleys ; but many of the species flourish in both regions. Each plant has ite particular zone, differing in range and vertical height along the slopes. The shores of the Red Sea have their special flora, oharacteristio of which are the kudel {cnssipourea qfrieana) and the ahora (^avicennia tomentoaa), trees growing on the strip of coast which is alternately flooded by the tides. On the shores of Hawakil Bay these trees are similar in appearance and nearly as large as the European beech. At the foot of the range in the Sahel zone, often described as barren, the vegetation consists merely of scrub, except in the vicinity of the streams. The flora of the kwallas is distinguished especially by its wealth in deciduous trees, whose leaves fall in the dry season. Here flourish the sycamore and the fig ; here the tamarind and acacia intertwine their thorny branches along the banks of the mountain torrents. Here and there the huge baobab, " giant of the vegetable kingdom," which, nevertheless, in many respects presents the appearance of a grass, raises its bulging stem, often hollow and filled with water, its tufted branches terminating in wreaths of foliage. When blown down by the wind its huge trunk, some 60 to 80 feet in circumference, affords a refuge to the shepherds and their flocks. The palm scarcely penetrates into the kwallas, being confined mostly to the Bed Sea coast. Hence the Abyssinians import their dates from Arabia. The cereals are of a particular species, or else of varieties very different from those of Europe, and flourish best in the middle zone, where nearly all the Abyssinian towns are concentrated. The Shea and Amhara peasants are said to possess twenty-eight varieties of millet, twenty-four of wheat, sixteen of barley, and several kinds of rye and maize. The most general cereal is the dakuasa, an eleusina, which is now made into beer, but which formerly supplied bread exclusively for the royal family. The tef (tief), a species of poa, is eltio largely employed in the manufacture of farinaceous foods. The potato, intniduced by Sohimper, after flourishing for some time, was attacked by blight, and its culture has now been almost completely abandoned. The muaa emete, a species of banana growing in the kwallas, rarely bears fruit, probably because it comes originally from the Galla lowlands. The leaves are utilised for forage, and its roots taste like the potato when cooked. The European fruit-trees, or their corresponding varieties, generally produce excellent crops. The vine, doubtless introduced from Europe, as attested by its Greek name of voina (oinos), was formerly widely diffused throughout the whole intermediary zone, which was thence known as " vine-land." But this plant has almost dis- appeared, having been destroyed by the oidium. Some travellers have also accused King Theodore of having uprooted it, on the pretext that wine should be reserved for beings superior to mortals. Lastly, coffee does not appear to be indigenous, and is cultivated only in Gbjam, in the Gondar district, on the southern shore of Lake Tana, and in a few other regions of the plateau. FLORA. 148 One of the most characteristic wild plants of Abyssinian scenery is the kolkwal, or branching euphorbia, similar to the giant euphorbias of the Canaries and Azores. The fleshy branches of these trees interlock so tenaciously that they are trained round villages Uf protect them from sudden attacks. Many attain a height of over 40 feet. Their milky sap is a rank poison, much employed in the Abyssinian pharmacopoeia, while the wood serves for the manufacture of gun- powder. Another plant, the jibara {^rhynchopetalum montanum^, an annual similar in appearance to the palm, clothes the mountain sides to a height of some 11,000 feet. It is remarkable for a gorgeous display of lilac blossom clustering round a floral stem shooting from 10 to 16 feet above a topmost tuft of sword-like leaves. Another characteristic plant of the uplands is a giant thistle (^echinops giganteus), with a stem like that of a forest-tree, and flowers the size of a man's head. Still larger are the furze-bushes, which attain a height of some 26 feet. On the upland terraces also flourishes the tpajestic kuHno {^Brayera anthelmintmi), whose dense foliage, interspersed with innumerable bunches of pink flowers, is employed in Abyssinia, and even in Europe, as an infusion, as recommended by Brayer, against the tape-worm ; the ficus dara, a species of fig, resembles the Indian banian, with its aerial roots forming fresh atoms and developing forests capable of sheltering some hundreds of people. The wanzeh (cordia AbysainicX is a tufted tree usuallyplanted round houses. The conifer family Is represented on the upland plateaux by the yew, and especially by the juniper, whose huge trunk rises from 100 to 130 feet, and in Shoa even to 160 feet. Some regions of Abyssinia, especially the hilly Zebul district east of the border range, are covered with vast juniper forests, which present an unique appearance, for in no other part of the globe are conifers resembling those of the northern zone to be found matted together with a network of tangled creepers resembling those of the tropical forests. But, on the whole, Abyssinia is a disafforested country, the destruction of nearly all its upland woodlands being due to the common African practice of firing the prairie tracts. The landscape seen from the uplands is in many places relieved only by the green oases surrounding the villages or the sacred groves of the churches. Besides, but few varieties of trees are included in the Abyssinian flora, merely some 2.35 known species, of which thirty belong to the vo'ina'degas, and ten to the degas. But thanks to tlie variety of climates and vege- tation on the slopes and uplands, Abyssinia may possibly one day become a vast botanic garden for the cultivation of all European trees, alimentary and useful plants. A poor mineral country, containing little else but iron, salt, and sulphur in the volcanic regions, and some gold dust in Gojam and Damot, it is amply com- pensated by the abundant resources yielded by its diversified flora, European on the uplands and Indian on the lowlands. But these resources will be of little use till easy routes of communication are opened between the Abyssinian plateaux and the outer world. Even in the favourable season, when the rains have not swollen the torrents and converted the paths into quagmires, the traveller crossing Abyssinia from the Red Sea to the plains sloping to the Nile has a journey of some months before him. The stages and provisions are regulated by the king, and many a traveller has had to wait some weeks for the permission to continue Lis route. mmm K 144 NOKTH-EAST AFKICA. Fauna. ' ' i The diversity of climate and flora naturally gives rise to a corresponding variety in the animal kingdom. On the lowlands the fauna resembles that of Arabia or the Sahara, on the outer spurs that of Senegal, that of the Mediterranean on the plateaux, whilst it is almost European on the mountain summits. On the lower plain.i are found the giraffe, the zebra, the wild ass, and the ostrich. Of the numerous species of antelopes inhabiting Abyssinia, few ailvAnco far up the plateaux, although the wild goat is found on the crests of tfaf; ijimen rong^, ut a height of over 1 3,000 feet. Numerous varieties of the monkey family, among^ others the coluhm guereza, noted for its beautiful black-and-white fur, are confined to the lowland forests of Shoa, Gojam, and Ewalla-Woggara. But a certain species of cynocephales are found at an altitude of some 6,000 feet. The rhinoceros has also been met at an elevation of 8,000 feet. The elephant also frequents the mountains, although he prefers the thickets of the valleys, where he commits extensive depredations on the plantations. But this pachyderm is disappearing before the attacks of the hunter, who eagerly pursues it, as much for the sake of its ivory as to retaliate for the havoc it commits on the cultivated lands. Accord- ing to the Arab lowlanders, the elephant knows when to expect the caravans laden with durrah, attacks them from its ambuscades, and takes possession of the supplies. The hippopotamus is also forced by want of water as far into the inteiior as the foot of the cascades, and is also numerous in Lake Tana, where, however, it does not grow to such a size as those of the large African rivers. The lion is rarely found above the lowlands or beyond the Beni-Amer territory in the north. It differs from its Central African congeners by its deep black mane ; indeed, one variety, infesting the banks of the Takkazeh, is almost entirely black. A liiore dangorous animal is the leopard, which roams throughout the country to a iieight of 11,000 feet. Like the Indian tiger, these carnivora of tea become man-eaters, for when they have once tasted human flesh they prefer it to all other prey. A still more formidable beast is the wobo or abammho, believed by Lefebvre to be a wolf, and said to partake of the quolities of the lion and the leopard. The spotted hyeena is also very common. The buffalo, which frequents chiefly the riverain kwallas, is of all other savage beasts the readiest to attack men ; it fears no enemy, and its furious rush is checked neither by quagmires, rocks, nor prickly thickets. The wild faima also includes the wild boar, which, to spite the Mohammedans, is occasionally eaten by the Abyssinian Christians, although usually regarded as impure. The Abyssinians also reject the flesh of the tortoise, and of all animals show the greatest repugnance to the hare, in this latter respect strictly adhering to the law of Moses. It is usually stated that Africa possesses no song-birds, but Abyssinia best shows how erroneous thio state- ment is, as it possesses numerous varieties of these birds, nearly all of gorgeous plumage. The sacred ibis {jieronticua lethiopicus), no longer seen on the banks of the Egyptian Nile, is still met in the Upland Abyssinian valleys. The branches of trees overhanging rivers and pools are covered with the nests of the textor akcto, +1 »■ I ' wf ^w "i "! p nnr ^<^T»^'i iTi i'i' ' , i ,if ' ' iponding that of erraneun On the ich. Of vr up the nge, ut a amongst I confiued a certain hinoceros uents the commits appearing le sake of Accord- rans laden ) supplies, ior as the or, it does p territory eep black Bt entirely ghout the rora oftea er it to all elieved by 1 and the I frequents to attack ^[uagmires, ar, which, Christiana, le flesh of ire, in this stated that this state- gorgeous B banks of le branches extor akcto. INnABTTANTS. 145 ' -T*(i8^aaK«^'- ■ or ploceus aureua ; Stcckcr has counted as many as eight hundred and seventy-two of these biiHkot-nests on a single acucia. According to the altitude of the country that thoy inhabit, the AbyHsinians »rcar different domestic animals, (^amols are used only on the lowlundH, novor being found beyond a height of 6,000 foot. The Abyssinian horse, br«>d throughout uU the inhabited regions, is evidently of Arab stock, but smaller and stouter, of dog-like fidelity, and almost as strong and surofootc >. no longer predominates in Abyssinia, and their dynasties survive only in i<ntH, ontih it are no t^ards the oxilea," from the rove that Of the lat of the difference r eyes are htiara, or idditional >ok. But Id not be any case, nmunities anications inai's" of he power- cda. One the birth I Sea, and id best in , and their >ian Jews, lity. ^yssinians, B mosquea ve Jewish isel placed r race, the in to enter are bound them than n. Early ; them, the a. fifteen to to those of ide. They J ^ VT W IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 lis 1.1 1^128 lis ^" UA Iii2 122 ^ |j£ 12.0 u M Photographic Sciences Corporation // A^ ^:::, :;::;:>; 1 1.25 1 1.4 ■16 IRII^bB ;* < 6" — ^ Mi THE BOGOS. 147 «9 are mostly artisans, smiths, masons, carpenters, potters, and weavers ; some also are farmers and cattle-breeders, but all unanimously reject the mercantile profes- sion as contrary to the laws of Moses. Their interpretation of the holy books does not correspond to that of the rabbis of Europe and Asia ; besides, however zealous they are to obey the precepts of the " law," many of their practices are intermingled with numerous ceremonies borrowed from the native Christians. ' They are zealous in the strict observance of the Sabbath, in the sacrificial offerings on the holy stone of the temple, and adhering to the traditional rites in purifying themselves by frequent ablutions. Each family possesses a hut outside the village, where all sick persons must be removed for a stated term, a practice often causing the death of the aged, who are thus deprived of the services of their relations. But these religious customs will soon probably be but a memory of the past, as the Abyssinian Government considers that the subject should profess the same religion as the king. According to the reports of late travellers, a royal manifesto com- pelling the Felashas to become Christians was about to be issued. The caste of the Kamants, believed to be of Agau origin, are found in small communities in the mountains surrounding Gondar, in the k wallas of the north- western slope of Abyssinia, as well as in Shoa. They speak the same language ua the Felashas, whom they resemble in physical appearance ; their traditions are the same, and like them they claim descent from the prophet Moses. If they do not celebrate the Sabbath, they at least abstain from work upon that day ; some are also said to do no work on Christian feast-days. However, they are considered as pagans by Jews and Christians alike, and are said to practise certain ceremonies in the recesses of the mountains. At the beginning of his reign Theodore intended to forcibly convert them to Christianity ; but he was advised that it would not be proper to treat as equals before God these despised people, the hewers of wood and drawers of water to the families of Gondar. The Eamants are far more indus- trious than the Abyssinians, who consider themselves their superiors, and Gondar and the surrounding towns are dependent for their daily supplies on the labour of this tribe. Like the Orejones of the New World, and like the "Wa-Kwafi of the Kilima N'jaro district and many other Bantu tribes, the Eamant women distend the lobe of the ears with wooden discs, causing the outer cartilage to reach the shoulders. • ^ The Wo'ito, on the banks of Lake Tana, hippopotamus hunters and fishermen, who till recently still spoke the Agau dialect, belong also to the aboriginal populations. They do not circumcise their children, and eat the flesh of animals clean or unclean. The Tsellans, in the same region, are wandering shepherds. The Boons. ..' .ui^-ti':- .■---iK-.^-;. The Mensa, and Bogos, or Bilens, who occupy the northern slope of the Abyssinian mountains in the Senhit (Sennaheit or "beautifid") country, which separates the Sahel from the Barka Valley, are also said to be of Agau origin, although d'Abbadie connects them with the ancient Blemmyea. The Bogos, or ■ ' ."^ ' .. * > * -f,"^ ' i y , ' . ' ' ' - U!,.,l.-i.')i;-J!i..l.„ ' ^V. ' -Vt- 148 NOETH-EAST APRICA. rather the Boasgors, that is " Sons of the Boas," say that their ancestor was an Agau of Lasta, who is said to have fled from his country towards the middle of the sixteenth century to escape the vendetta. Situated as they are, between the hostile lowland Mohammedans and upland Christians, the Bogos have been almost exterminated. In 1858 they numbered merely some 8,400, but this remnant have kept their Bilen language and a few of their Christian practices. Although reduced to a few family communities they have been studied most care- fully, their customs being taken as typical of those found among all the peoples of Northern Abyssinia. The commimity is divided into two classes, the Shumaglieh, or " elders," and the Tigr^, or " clients ; " these latter probably conquered Abyssinians or immigrants that have been received into the tribe. The Tigr^ is the slave of the Shumaglieh, who, however, cannot sell him, though he may yield him with his lands to another master ; he is even bound to protect him and avenge his insults. The life of a Tigre is valued at that of another, or at ninety-three cows, whereas that of a Shumaglieh is worth another Shumaglieh, or one hundred and fifty-eight head of cattle. The eldest son of a Shumaglieh inherits his father's two-edged sword, white cows, lands, and slaves, but the paternal dwelling falls to the lot of the youngest son, the daughters receiving nothing. Female virtue is highly esteemed, but women have no personal rights or responsibilities, being regarded merely n^ so much property, and are classed with the hyaena, the most despised animal through- out Abyssinia. The Bogo husband never sees the face or pronounces the name of his mother-in-law, whilst it is criminal for the wife to mention the name of her husband or father-in-law. According to tradition the picturesque country now occupied by the Bogos was once the country of the Roms, who are still com- memorated in song as daring warriors, who " hurled their spears against heaven." These ancient Roms were, perhaps, the advanced pioneers of Byzantine civilisation, or else Adulitains driven into the interior by the Mussulman conquest. I The Mensas and Mareas. North of the Bogos, and occupying the same uplands, dwell the Takueh, also of Agau stock and speaking the Bilen language, whence their name of Bilen, some- times given to them by the Bogos. Like most of their neighbours, and probably with good reason, they pride themselves on being a nation of conquerors, but they have been aborigines of African extraction since time immemorial, and lands formerly belonging to their families are still shown in Hamassen. The Dambellas in the west are also Abyssinians, whilst the Mensa highlanders of the east and the Marea in the mountainous region bounded north by the Anseba river, claim to be of Arab origin, and even trace their descent from an uncle of the Prophet. Although peasants, they are half nomads dwelling in tents. Yet the Mensas and Mareas were formerly Christians like the Takueh and Bogos, and the work of converting them to Mohammedanism was not undertaken till the first half of this century. Since their conversion, in times of peril they still often pray to Ezgiabeher, their TI istoT wus an e middle of jetween the have been 0, but this in practices, i most care- le peoples of )TB," and the immigrants Shumaglieh, Is to another he life of a Eis that of a ight head of dged sword, e lot of the ily esteemed, merely u^ so nal through- ses the name name of her country now re still com- aist heaven." 3 civilisation, kuefa, also of Bilen, some- and probably )rs, but thev [, and lands le Dambellas east and the claim to be it. Although and Mareas f converting ihis century. abeher, their THE HABABS— THE BENI-AMEES. 149 former god, instead of to Allah, and have also ceased to raise mounds over their dead, like the Bogos. They number about 16,000, and are divided into two tribes, the " Blacks " au,d the " Reds." These last, forming the southern division, by a strange contrast, cultivate a blackish soil, whilst the former, or northern division, occupy a reddish soil. Their language is identical with that of their slaves, the conquered Tigre, who possess no rights, in spite of the precepts of Mohammedanism, which confers the title of brothers on all the faithful. On the death of a Marea the head of every Tigr^ family is bound to present a cow to his heirs. The Mareas exceed all other races in aristocratic pride. Death without defence is the only punishment they will receive, for they refuse to humble themselves by appearing before any tribunal and offering any excuses for their conduct. If the blood of the tribe is sidlied by an illegitimate birth, father, mother, and child are all destroyed. . The Hababs. North of the Mensas and Mareas are the Az-Hibbehs or Hababs, pastors wandering over the mountainous plateaus bounded east by the Sahel plains of the Red Sea, and west by the Barka Valley. These people also are connected with the Abyssinians by their language — ^which, like the Tigr^, is a Ghez dialect — as well as by their traditions. They were ChristianB, at least in name, doMm to the middle of the nineteenth century, but on adopting a nomad life they also conformed to the religion of the surroxmding tribes. Divided into small republics, their only wealth consisting of cattle, the Hababs roam amongst the surroimding mountains and plains in search of water and pastures. During the winter the lonely Nafka plateau, which may be considered the centre of the Habab country, is completely abandoned to the wild beasts. Nevertheless, the remains of buildings and graves disposed in three or four circular stages prove that this region was once permanently occupied. These ruins are attributed to the Bet-Maliehs, or " People of the wealthy abode," a small tribe believed to be of aboriginal extraction. Like the Habab people, the elephant of this region is also nomad ; during the winter rains its herds frequent the eastern slopes of the plateau bordering the Sahel, in summer returning to the Nafka heights on their way westwards to the Barka Valley and the slopes of the Abyssinian mountains. '-';" The Beni-Amebs. '■i.^-fi^^^:^'.'.^- In the lowland districts north, west, and east of the Hababs dwell the Beni- Amers, who appear to be of mixed Abyssinian and Beja origin, speaking a dialect half Beja, "Bedouin," and half Tigr^, locally known by the name of Hmm. Amongst the Nebtabs of the Sahel — all nobles, and recognised as such by their neighbours — ^both languages are also current. The Abyssinian element is more strongly represented according as the Beni-Amer tribes approach the great plateau, and those living in the plains of Samhar, near the Mensas, speak Tigr^ almost i i i I w If m ' 1*1 iiiw f'h- "."IW.f JHKW 160 NORTH-EAST AFBIOA. exclusively. They marry the women of the Bogos and other mountain tribes, but are too proud to give their daughters in marriage to the Abyssinians. In these regions of transition, as well as in the slave-markets surrounding the plateaux, strikingly different types are met, such as the broad faces and high cheekbones of the Agau, and the high forehead, hollow cheeks, delicate nose, and savage eye of the Arabs, or of those assimilated to the Arabs, such as the Hadendoas and Shaikiehs. The Sahos. The Sahos or Shohos, occupying the slope of the Hamassen plateau west of Massawah, live by cattle-breeding and acting as guides between the seaport and the highlands. Some authors look upon them as true Abyssinians, but most explorers connect them with the Afars, or even with the Gallas. Their dialects, of Afar origin, resemble those spoken throughout the southern region as far as the Awash River. Although very frugal, they have full features with a fresh and healthy complexion. Like all the other peoples of the coast, they are mostly Mohammedans; nevertheless, near the plateau there are some who intermingle Christian traditions with their Mussulman faith, whilst a few villages, where the missionaries reside, have become Catholic. Although nominally subject to the " King of Kings," the Shohos are really independent, even the chiefs possessing merely a nominal authority over their subjects. All the members of the tribe have an equal voice in the assemblies, and anyone trying to dictate to another would be excluded or put to death. The observance of their hereditary customs and the respect of public opinion, unite the Shoho tribes in a compact nationality. The law of blood for blood is rigidly observed ; a murderer must either die or pay the price fixed for a life, and if the assassin has no relations to answer for him, his tribe draw lots for a substitute. In some instances, however, the family of the murderer consents to his execution, and in this case his parents and friends assist in putting him to death, so as to share in the responsibility of his punishment. The Shanoat.las. West of the Abyssinian plateaux, on the spurs facing the Atbara, the Rahad, the Dender, the Blue River and its affluent the Tumat, the Abyssinian peoples no longer intermingle with the Arabs and Afars, but with Negro elements. The name of Shangalla, or ShankaUa, by which these nat'.ves occupying the western slope of the mountains are known, is indiscriminately applied to numerous tribes, differing in appearance, language, and origin, their only resemblance lying in their almost black skins, relatively barbarous condition, warlike and slave-hunting pro- pensities. From time immemorial it has been and still continues to be the custom of the Abyssinian barons living near the Shangallas to descend into the forests with their marauding hordes, plundering and killing those who dare to defend themselves, n tribes, but s. In these the plateaux, 1 cheekbones and savage dendoas and teau west of e seaport and 18, but most 'heir dialects, as far as the a fresh and y are mostly intermingle «s, where the OS are really ty over their ssemblies, and death. The ion, unite the idly observed; le assassin has ite. In some iution, and in x> share in the 'a, the Rahad, ian peoples no lements. The g the western merous tribes, I lying in their s-hunting pro- be the custom he forests with tnd themselves, ^„^,l^|^^'^*'"^^H '-^Mf ^~*^ > <'vvvi\:' ^ ■*'r':!"'::., r'^'^W 'W ^/ k ^*''"^**'- s S m ' THE 9HANOALLA8. 161 and presenting their captives to their king, or selling them to the slave merchants. Xear the plains the Shangallas have other enemies to fear, the Arabs, who have also reduced a considerable portion of the black population to slavery. Lastly, the Fig. 48.— InHABITAIfTt OF AbYMINIA. Soala 1 ; 8.800.000. ssr,s .If) x X* \j^'"^^^sSkjJisiiSii3'^^^K \ / r^^ jv^\ '^. |7\j>*j^^^^^J3i(^Mk^lll^SS Y '■^"7V-^''j^^ ^i ^hQjS!' "^''f 1 ^ssm^-^r^m^ Vs ' \ ^ /^^fLrn^ \.""J^ri^y -"^"Vi ^■'^Sfe^ 'TV^WE^r "5! ^^^^^ 15* 1* ^"^ ^'' J ^^ ^ ..■^' Ml^^S ■^ » 'pfT A^Mv ^^BKiiJ^n 't->^ML Hv^^^^Sli ^''''"^.^ffTr^^'Er V^ML .^ JW-^ tT ^'^ BM^g^u-l^^SL^ «'\^l iA^.|,£^lJijla^m •'xjll^/.^^i^^vrj^yji^ifi^'^pB .V^^QPk^^ |HA\y^RnHK^n^|^^3B|29r^^^VI tjft^ ^^^^'^^Cv^^^'^-mjE^i^''^^^ ^^^H .'/'f^if^jH^^^^iAuLV ^■k.^^^ii^sssi^^ '^1'^^?^^^ '1 ^''i^'^vi^tiXHE^^wnffl^Vli'^ijnj^Wk^^S^^B v'Ji^^^BS Vwlii^^**^ w^^^iu^L^^^^ .J ^SCTaffP^^^^^^-^^™*™^''^^^^*^^*'^^ j#'^^^^*'fe'80 1Iilei. land has also been frequently wasted by the invasions of the Gallas or Ilm-Oniias from the south. Some of these Gallas, however, such as those west of the Abai River, and those in the province of Mecha, have settled in the districts depopulated by them. i 162 NORTU-KAST AFKICA. The TioRfi and Amiiahas. The civilised Abysginiun highlundorH arc divided into two main groupH, differ- ing from each other in speech and traditions — the Tigr^~-;'.' .?.,'-.-, 'v.,v:;;;; >^-' The industries, properly so called, are in the same state of neglect as ag^culture, although the Abyssinians themselves are sufficiently intelligent and skilful to utilise their own raw materials instead of exporting them to foreign manufacturers. Incessant wars compelling all the able population to bear arms, and the contempt for ^abour and workmen existing in all feudal and slave countries, have prevented the Abyssinians from developing their natural skill and taste for the industries. All the masonry, carpentering, and upholstering, as weU as the manufacture of tools, weapons, and instsuments, are left to the Felasha Jews, who are rewarded for their services by being hated and persecuted as budaa — that is, were- wolves — or else I » Siit^jtib.^ .-J«k mbition U The sad Continual \c monkn by Like tho H dogrudtxl »och for tho hed to such nf; from the iH another ogioal quib- ves a salt to idle. ulture is still stick or iron Lf ter the seed 'ul plants are ielded abun- tn chains, are [assawah and to have been s trade with sulture of the id Munzinger Were the colonies, the h coffee and ted States in » agriculture, ilful to utilise lanufacturers. the contempt ve prevented le industries, mufacture of rewarded for jIves — or else I f RELIGION AND EDUCATION. IM M sorcorrrs. A fow families of Hindu extraction, and naturali^nl Amn>tiinnn, omamont tho shioldN, «word«, and noddloH with filigree work, make trinkotn, and prepare tho jewels, nocklacen, and bracelets of tho women ; whilst a few Kuropoun workmen, residing at tho court, also contribute somewhat to tho induitriul pr«Hlucts of AbysHinia. The fine cotton tissues used for tho »haman and other articleiH of clothing are manufactured in the country, but the red and blue cotton fringes with which tho borders are ornamented aro usually imported. Liko tho Mohammedan peoples of the surrounding districts, tho Abyssinians are very skilful in tho prepa- ration of all kinds of loatherwaro, such as shields, saddles, and amulets. Most of the people are their own 'tailors, and bleach thoir own cloth by means of endot seeds, which answer the purpose of soap. It is a point of honour amongst them on feast- days to wear clothes of spotless whiteness. Art, in the strict sense of the term, is wrongly supposed to be unknown to the Abyssinians. Most European explorers speak in very contemptuous terms of the work of the native painters, and certain barbarous frescoes are doubtless of a character to justify their sneers. Nevertheless, the Abyssinian school, sprung from the Byzuntino ecclesiastical art, has produced several works which show at least imagination and vigour. In the ruins of the palace of Eoskoam, near Qondar, remains of Portuguese frescoes and native paintings are still to be seen side by side, and here the foreign artists, with their insipid saints, scarcely compare favourably with the natives. Nor are there lacking in Abyssinia innovating artists who protest by their bold conceptions against the stagnation of the traditional rules. They even treat historic subjects, and produce battle-scenes, painting the Abyssinians in full face, and their enemies, such us Mohammedans, Jews, and devils, in profile. They also display much skill and tasto in bookbinding, copying and illuminating manuscripts. As to the atmari, or strolling minstrels, they live on the bounty of the nobles, whose mighty deeds it is their duty to sing. Hence their poetry is a mere mixture of flattery and mendacity, except when they are inspired by the love of war. Abyssinian bards recite before the warriors, inspiring their friends and insulting their adversaries, whilst female poets mingle with the soldiers, encouraging them by word and deed. •■ . ' •; 4 Religion and Education. In spite of the encroachments of Mohammedanism, which besieges the Abyssinian plateaux like the waves of the sea beating against the foot of the rocks, the old religion of " Prester John " is still professed. Introduced in the fourth century, at the period when the political preponderance belonged to Constantinople, and communications were easily established between Aksimi and " Eastern Rome " by "dij of the Red Sea, the Arabian peninsula, and Syria, the doctrine of the Abyssinian christians is one of those which at one time contended for the supremacy among the Churches of Asia Minor. The Abyssinian Christians, like the Copts of Egypt, jointly forming the so-called " Alexandrian Church," are connected with these primitive commimities through the sects condemned by the coimcil of Chalcedon in the middle of the fifth century. The Abyssinian " Monophysites," following the doctrines of 166 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. Dioscorus and Eutychius, diEPer from the Greek and Roman Catholics by recognis- ing one nature only in Jesus Christ, and in making the Holy Ghost proceed from God the Father alone. Christ, however, although he became man, is none the leiss considered as Cod, thanks to his double or triple birth, the manner and succession of which have given rise to so many endless disputes between theologians, and have even caused sanguinary wars. Gondar and Aksum have often had recourse to arms to settle the vexed question of the " double " or " triple birth." Following the interpretations, the words, at one time taken in the proper sense, at another translated into a mystic language, completely change their value ; and European Catholic or Protestant missionaries have often been able to explain, to the applause of their hearers, that there was no essential difference between the Abyssinian faith and that which they wished to introduce. For the Roman Catholics especially the process is easy enough, for have they not, like the Abyssinians, the worship of Mary, the veneration of images, the intercession of the saints, fasts, purgatory, indulgences, and begging communities P Received like a native, JBermudez, the first Catholic missionary, who arrived in Abyssinia about 1525, caused himself to be consecrated by the Abyssinian primate, and became for a time his successor. Meanwhile the Mohammedan Gallas, led by Ahmed Graneh, that is, " the Left- handed," who possessed firearms, invaded Abyssinia, destroying its armies, sacking and burning its villages, and the empire would probably hove been destroyed, had not 400 Portuguese, led by Christopher de Gama, son of the famous navigator, hastened to restore the balance of power. These events took place in 1541. The Gallas were beaten, but the Portuguese demanded as the price of their services a fief comprising a third part of the kingdom, and the conversion of all the Abys- sinians to the Catholic faith. Thus began the religious wars between the Alexan- drian and Roman sectaries. One of the first Jesuit missions was compelled to leave the country before securing the recognition of the Pope's authority ; but a second was more successful, and in 1624 the " king of kings " abjured the Monophysite faith and issued an older for the imiversal adoption of Romanism. The Inquisition was introduced, and revolts, barbarously suppressed, stained the kingdom with blood. For eight years Abyssinia was officially a province ol the Catholic world ; but after a terrible massacre of the peasants, the Emperor Claudius, wearied of bloodshed, issued an edict of toleration, and all the Abyssinians soon returned to the old faith. The Catholic priests were exiled or died violent deaths, excepting the Patriarch, whom the Arabs captured, and for whom they obtained a }ieavy ransom from the Portuguese of Goa. > During the present century the Catholic and Protestant missionaries have returned to Abyssinia, but being regarded with suspicion as strangers, have never been tolerated for any length of time. The Abyssinians are usually very indifferent to religious matters, and would readily allow churches of divers denominations to be built by the side of their own, but they fear lest conversion might be the fore- runner of conquest. Prince Eassa, afterwards the famous £!ing Theodore, is stated to have said, " The missionaries will be welcome in my kingdom, on the condition that my subjects do not say, ' I am a Frenchmtan because I am a Catholic/ or < I I "'^wfle^itBj^ EELIGION AND EDUCATION. 107 ic8 by recognis- t proceed from is none the 1qb8 and succession gians, and hare lad recourse to h." Following ense, at another ; and European to the applause Abyssinian faith Bs especially the the worship of 'asts, purgatory, I, Bermudez, the jed himself to be successor. ^f, at is, " the Left- i armies, sacking Q destroyed, had imous navigator, e in 1641. The their services a ai all the Abys- reen the Alexan- ompelled to leave by ; but a second the Monophysite The Inquisition igdom with blood. ! world ; but after ied of bloodshed, 1 to the old faith. ng the FatriaroL, ransom from the nissionaries have ngers, have never ly very indifferent denominations to ight be the fore- rheodore, is stated 1, on the condition Catholic,' or * I am an Englishman because I am a Protestant.' " Later on he even forbade foreigners to preach, tolerating them only as artisans. His own fate justified the sentiment he so often repeated — " First the missionaries, then the consuls, and then the soldiers ! " Abyssinian territory is now interdicted to priests of foreign religions, and Europeans, like Schimper, dwelling in the coimtry, have been obliged to adopt the national religion. Till recently the Mussulman propagandists seem to have been more successful than the European missionaries. Nearly all the frontier peoples had embraced Islam, retaining but a vague recollection of their Christian faith, and even in the interior the Mussulmans threatened ty selling him. together with )ming a f reed- their enforced iilmans. Like TOPOGRAPHY— GONDAE, 161 the American abolitionists, but for an entirely different purpose, they had established a " i1)terranean route," that is to say, a series of secret depots under- ground or in the woods, stretching between Gondar and Metamneh. The convoys of slaves were carefully imprisoned all day in these depots, passing from one to the other only under cover of night. Topography. The natural centre of Abyssinia, which has also at various epochs been the seat of empire, is the fertile basin whose central depression contains the waters of Lake Tana. The mean height of this favoured region exceeds 6,600 feet ; it forms the voina-dega zone, which corresponds to the temperate zone of Europe, although enjoying a more equable climate and a richer vegetation. Thanks to these happy conditions, the land yields the most abundant and varied crops in Abyssinia, and here have been built the most populous towns, which in this feudal region are elsewhere extremely rare. Another great advantage of this district is its relative facility of access. From Khartum to Lake Tana the direct route rises gradually, crossing only one steep ridge, that of Wali-dabba, north-west of the great lake ; but it would be difficult to follow the route made through the gorges of the Blue Nile, an immense semicircle described by the river beyond Abyssinia into the country of the Ilm-Ormas and Bertas. .• ' - ..'■■':■:":■. Gk)NDAR. -^ ''''i' One of the cities of the central Abyssinian basin is Goiidar, or rather Gwendar, usually designated as the capital, although it is merely the chief religious centre. Gondar is not of ancient origin, dating only from the beginning of the seventeenth century, although it has already more ruined buildings than houses in good condition. Most of the churches were destroyed by Theodore in a fit of rage, and on the rounded hill overlooking the town from the north are the remains of a gimp, or " stronghold," which, in spite of its dilapidated condition, is still the finest building in Abyssinia. Its reddish sandstone walls with basalt parapets, round towers, square keep, and lofty gateways in the Portuguese style, give it an impos- ing appearance ; but it is being gradually overgrown by trees and shrubs, while entire portions have been systematically demolished. " Since we must no longer build monuments," said a queen in the middle of this century, " why should we allow those of others to exist P " Seen from afar at the foot of its picturesque ruins, commanded by churches, and dotted with clumps of trees, Gondar presents the appearance of a picturesque European town, with its amphitheatre of hills, its silvery rivulets winding through the prairies of the Dembea, and the glittering surface of the neighbouring lake. » Gondar is situated at a height variously estimated at from 6,300 to 6,800 feet, on the southern and western sides of a gently sloping hill. Its houses are built, not in groups so as to form a town properly so-called, but in separate quarters, between which intervene heaps of rubbish and waste spaces, where leopards and 11— AF. i r wmmmmm ut NOETH-EAST AFBICA. panthers occasionally venture at night-time. Although it could easily accommodate some 10,000 families, its present population is estimated at only from 4,000 to 7,000 Christians and Jews, each occupying a special quarter. The houses of the rich citizens are mostly one-storied round towers, with conic roofs thatched with reeds ; the domestic animals occupy the ground-floor, which also serves as a store for utensils and provisions. Being an ecclesiastical centre, Gondar has no foreign ^ Fig. 49.— OoMDAB. Scale 1 : 66,000. ' \ L . of Greenwich 37*31' i7'ii' . 8.800TaTdi. .'58 t trade beyond what is required for the local wants. Most of the mechanics, smiths, masons, and carpenters are Eamants and Jews. For five months in the year Gondar would be completely cut ofE from the southern provinces, but for the bridge built by the Portuguese over the Magech, the chief river of the plain of Dembea, hich has hitherto resisted all the inundations. South of Gondar are the villages of Fety'a and Jenda, which lie in a well-cultivated district. iccommodate )m 4,000 to ouses of the hatched with es as a store IS no foreign iO ichanics, smiths, ths in the year it for the bridge lain of Dembea, are the villages ..ara7?*«-.3ffi^iSS~jrS35 «**» — -^ 1 |i I r \:-% .; * ' J k V-- N. ■'Wt^"' ^ CHELOA-AMBA-MARIAM—IPAO— DEBRA-TABOR. Cheloa — Amha-Mariam — Ifag. 168 Towards ^'. j Tiorth- western angle of the Dombea plain are the scattered hamlets forming the town of Chelga, which, though less famous than Gondar, is of more commercial importance. Lying neor the water-parting between the Blue Nile and the Atbora, it is frequented by the Abyssinian merchants ond the traders from Qalabat and Oednref, who reach it from Wohni, the first station on the Abyssinian frontier. In the upper valley of the Goang, which flows to the Atbara, are beds of excellent coal, disposed in layers some two to three feet thick, ond very easy to work. From the plateau which rises west of the town to a height of over 8,800 feet, a view is commanded of the vast circle of hills and valleys enclosing Lake Tana, the Tsanu of the Tigr^. At the foot of the basalt crag of Gorgora, rising near the north-western shore of the lake, stands the large village of Changar, which possesses a port serving as the outlet for Gondar, Chelga, and other towns of the province. The only communication between the plain of Dembea and the riverain districts east of the lake is by a defile, in which stands the custom-house of Ferka-ber, much dreaded by travellers. Beyond this post the towns and villages belonging to this lacustrine regidn are built away from the banks at a considerable height above the bed of the streams. Auiba-Mariam, or the " Fort of Mary," with its famous church, stands on a level and treeless table-land, at whose base the villages of the district of Emfraa nestle amongst the tufted vegetation, ^fag, or Etfag, forms a group of villages encircling the foot of a barren volcanic rock some 1,600 feet high, which commands from the north the abrupt plateau of Beghemeder. Situated at the northern extremity of a fertile plain watered by the copious rivers Reb and Gumara, and commanding the narrow passages which wind round the base of the mountains at the north-eastern angle of the lake, Ifag is an important commercial emporium with a central custom-house. The caravans stop and reform at the town of Darita, farther east. The plains of Fogara, stretching southwards, are said to produce the finest tobacco in Abyssinia, while also yielding rich pasturages for the numerous herds. Like Koarata, farther south, Ifag was formerly celebrated throughout Abyssinia for the excellence of its wine, obtained from plants introduced by the Portuguese ; but the vines, which generally grew to a gigantic size, nearly all perished in 1855 of o'idium, at the same time that the European vineyards were wasted by this destructive fungus. Debra-Tabor. South of the plains of Fogara stretches a ridge running east and west, and over- looked from the east by the oloud-capped cone of Mount Guna. This broad ridge, covered with a thick layer of black earth and furrowed by the rivulets flowing from the marshy sides of Guna, is the plateau of Debra-Tabor, or " Moimt Tabor," so-called from a church formerly a place of pilgrimage, but which, since the time of Theodore, has become the chief residence of the Abyssinian kings. From a i m ni i mji iii n n^ n 164 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. strategical point of viow tho position hns been admirably chonon. To the west stretch tho riverain phiins of Lake Tana, the most fertile in tho kingdom. From the summit, exceeding H,600 feet, on which his palace is perched, the sovereign overlooks the lands which furnish his amiy with supplies. From this point he can easily reoch the Upper Tukkazeh valley towards the east, or the valley of the AbaK and the routes of 8hoa to the south. The capital of a country engaged in perpetual warfare could not be more fortunately situated. But the royal camping- ground has often been shifted on the plateau of Debra- Tabor. The village of Debra-Tabor, where the " king of kings " often resides during the rainy season, bears the name of Samara ; some miles to the north-west is the village of Gafnt, formerly inhabited by blacksmiths who were reputed sorcerers. Theodore had assigned it as a residence for a numerous colony of Protestant Fig. 60.— Dehha-Tabob. SmO* 1 : 3fi0,000. " «MilM. missionaries, employed, not for the evangelisation of the inhabitants, but for the manufacture of harness, weapons, and materials for war. Gafat was at that time the arsenal of Abyssinia. The watercourses of Debra-Tabor flow to Lake Tana through the Reb, which latter river, not far from Gafat, forms a superb cascade nearly 70 feet high. West of Debra-Tabor, on a lowland promontory of the plateau, are the ruins of the Castle of Arengo, the " Versailles of the Negus," built beneath some large trees, on the edge of a precipice over which falls a cascade, its waters disappearing in the virg^ forest below. Thermal springs from 100° to 107° F. abound in this region. The most frequented are those of Wanziglieh in the valley of southern Gumara. The neighbouring village is the only place in Abyssinia where vines have been introduced. . ■ . ,^' -:.,.^,... i. .,- < , , - MaHPERA-MaRIAM — EOARATA. The basin of the Gumara, like that of the Eeb, has also a town famous in the local records. Mahdera-Mariam, or " Mary's Rest," stands between two a£9uent8 iHi iiii mmmtim Wt«WTijr*WW i jfejaii iii llij afc.-. ■ Slisa'*-' MAHDERA-MARIAM-KOARATA. !•• To the west lorn. From le sovereign lis point he k^uUcy of the r engaged in ^ul cumping- mides during h-west is the «d sorcerers. )f Protestant its, but for the 18 at that time ;he Heb, which jt high. West IB of the Castle ^ trees, on the ig in the virgin in this region. Lthem Gumara. ines have been n famous in the )n two affluents of the Oumara on un enormous basalt rock, *' grouping its gardcii-oncirclcd hounoa around the clumps of juniiwrh which mark the sites of churchos." Tho t<»wn is surrounded on three sides by chasms, but connected with the ncighlH)uring ])lutruu on the fourth by a narrow isthmus which might bo easily fortified. Muhdcra- Mariam is no longer a royal residence, but itw two churches — those of the " Mother " and the " Son " — are still much frequented by pilgrims, and numerous merchants visit its fair. Two distinct quarters were till recently occupied by Mussulmans, Fig. 61.— Maiiucha-Mahiaii. SokU 1 : 20,1)00. SB- 11 50 i^ * ^H JKL .;. '•''■.■-.f.'MBi mmwM 1^ l^r? ^^K^^JR^ _^ ^lI ^•i-kfi ^^S gj I^M? m^^ fi^UpN^^MI sp^'Ik ^H ^^R^«-v*^^l mmwSl w ir 30' ^^H P^iM^ ^ II* 50 . . of Graanwich ■be,' 58*00'50' .6S0 yard*. who differ from the other Abyssinians merely by their peaceful and business-like habits. The hot springs of Mahdera-Mariam are retailed by the priests, who also practise the medical art. The most important commercial town on the eastern bank of Lake Tana is Koarata, situated about six miles north-east of the spot where the Aba'i emerges from the lacustrine basin, and near the mouths of the Gumara and Reb. Were Abyssinia well provided with routes, this town would form the converging point for the routes of many river valleys. A rounded basalt hill stands in the middle of the plain, its western spur projecting into the lake. The town covers a eon- 106 NOltTIl-KAHT AFIIICA. Hulpriihlo oxtont; tho dwoUinf^ of tho iMittor cluwwn uro nurroundcd by tiirf^ ^urdt'tiH; the Htrcots form Hhudy avunucn, whcnco uro |N)rcoiv'ountuin of Mury," oii the oiiHt, Ihhrdnr to tho west. Sovorul \ tWa^vn, neater ant of Dek, some 1(] Mjuare miles in exte/)*. forma u >w volcunie rock covered with tufted vegetation, and skirted ')y conio liills Here the pricHts of Kourata have deinmited their troasuros ; henco I > explorers have received penuission to visit this island, whilst that of Dega, consocraN'd to St. Stephen, is holy soil, forbidden to all profune visitors. Matrahn, another holy island in Lake Taua, lies close to the north-eastern shore, and viewed from between branches of ti-oes covered with tho ■winging nests of tho weaver-bird, presents a most charming jippearanco. But tho holiness of this island did not prevent Theodore from shutting up all its inhabi- tants in a monastery, which he then set on fire. To the south-oast of Lake Tana, on one of its affluents, lamala, tho capital of Aba/tqfer, is very much frequented for its hot springs and mineral waters. Moi'A — Dim A — Bishara. Beyond the basin of Lake Tana the Abyssinian towns belonging to the watershed of the Abai or Blue Nile are mostly situated on the plateau or on the broad grassy terraces of the extensive plains bordering the right bank of the river, and afford- ing pasturage for herds of large cattle and horses. Mota, one of the most important markets in the " kingdom " of Gojam, is situated on an elevation at tho extremity of the plateaux which bound the northern base of the Talba Waha Mountains ; its regularly built houses are, like those of Mahdera-Mariam, surrounded by leafy trees, while a large park with long symmetrical avenues encircles the church. Below the terraces of Mota are the ruins of a bridge, which spanned the Abai River with nine arches, of which the central arch, some 66 feet broad, has been broken ; but the merchants have stretched a rope over the gap and manage to pass themselvec and their commodities over this frail temporary substitute. Farther south, the village of Karaneo and a few neighbouring hamlets are peopled with Francis, or Francs, that is to say, the descendants of the Portuguese soldiers who arrived in the six- teenth century with Christopher do Gama. Martola-Mariam, one of the local churches, the sculptures of whose interior are said by Beko to be of exquisite work- manship, is undoubtedly of Portuguese construction, although the people invest it with much greater antiquity. .;' Facing the eastern curve of the Abai follow in succession the two religious towns of Debra- Werk and Dima, celebratef" the former for its seminary, and the latter for the curious paintings in its church of St. George. Debra- Werk, built in amphitheatral form on the side of a hill, possesses the highest and best-built houses of any other Abyssinian towns. Bishara, some miles south of Dima, is a •It ' W, '|'' ^.yjji!'', *' '^wy. it ^i n |i n iT , i' . ' y y?»w i" ^ . y DOBAEIK— LALIBALA. 169 district is the liau and Galla lins, Dambadsha ctuary like that residence of the Mankusa, Burt, an intermittent in the midst of the province of lese populations, sst, and the only thless Theodore; for courage and situated in two [ghbouring com- Ormas assemble of Damot and 3 precious metal ^hbours. Arch- ells us that the arns and griffins, rings again from Italian engineer and children ; cisterns and wells sunk in the soil supply it with water, whilst the fertile neighbouring valleys furnish provisions in abundance. It was at Magdala that Theodore kept for two years the English prisoners, for whose rescue an Anglo- Indian Army was dispatched in 1868. The fortress of Magdala, destroyed by the English, and afterwards conquered by the King of Shoa from an independent chief, and ceded by him to his sovereign, the King of Abyssinia, has since been restored, on account of its great strategic importance. It forms an advanced outpost in the Galla country, which is traversed by the shortest route to the kingdom of Shoa. At the eastern base of the rocks of Magdala, in a gorge commanded eastwards by .; ■* k,:*-: .-;■,■> .,-,•;^■iJ; Kg. 63.— Maod*la. .y ,"., ;'*,'■ Boale 1 : 900,000. . MJ'^^;2£M MltfflKI^K^ ^MHH^^I j^^^^Hn^Hj pPKJffl^g wgMJHpB^jB^Bff^^^RfJWIHg^^ w HP^vnSif^^^H^PB '\B^SBi^3HiiX^ISS^J*uiSmm \r OS' j^l^^^^ng ■t rs ^t^^bB^^^^HMhhI 25' ^^^nPnl^J ^^Bfcj^fe^jFvI-'Vj^^^^M^^ f^^tfl^^T'c^' .''^^^^^HBIk ^H^^ liHiSfv£u%"t1^B9^^^lai^ll^lB^^R BO,' _ ^' ^H^^^^^^^^H^^ S^I^S^n KS^iriHBlSKliBflHil 39*15 E . of Greenwich 59*a5' . sHnct. le Beshilo, stands le of Theodore's free, and defying of 9,100 feet, or liariam, although Apparently insur- il crescent-shaped ited peak. The nrith the southern )y a narrow path, ons. The upper barracks, prisons, he king's women other basalt promontories, stands the village of Tanta, or Tenia, peopled by merchants who supply the citadel with provisions. . DOBARIK — LaLIBALA. The Abyssinian towns standing on plateaux intersected by the gorges of the Takkazeh and its affluents are, like those of the banks of the Blue Nile, mostly of military or religious origin. Besides, they are few and far between, and some of them, after enjoying a long period of prosperity, have been abandoned and now contain more ruins than inhabited houses. The least populous region of this slope is that whose waters flow eastwards into the Takkazeh between the Beghemeder and Simen uplands. This province of Belessa has been traversed by few explorers on account of the lack of resources and the unhealthiness of the kwalla, which must be crossed amid the various sections of the plateau. But in Simen the chief towns of this mountainous province, Inshatkab the capital, Faros- Saber and Dobarik, near the Lamalmon Pass, have been frequently visited, thanks to their situation on 170 NOETH-BAST AFRICA. the route between Gondar and Massawah by way of Tigr^. Dobarik is the place where Theodore caused two thousand persons to be massacred in cold blood in revenge for the death of his two English favourites, Bell and Plowden. North of Simen are scattered ihe villages of the province of "Waldebba, one of the " holy lands " of Abyssinia, the personal property of the echagh^, and mainly peopled by monks. Lalibala, east of and not far from the sources of the Takkazeh, is another sacred region. This town stands on a basalt upland terrace, forming a spur of Mount Asheten, whose wooded slopes rise to the south-west. Seven irregularities in the soil serve as a pretext for its priests to boast that, like Rome and Byzan- tium, their city is built on seven hills ; like Jerusalem, it has its Mount of Olives, on which stand trees with huge trunks, brought from the Holy Land many centuries ago. The town and the churches are surrounded with trees which, together with the perpetual spring of this temperate region, combine to make this place a charming and salubrious residence. Still Lalibala is very sparsely popu- lated; its old buildings are crumbling away amidst ihe rocks, while its under- ground galleries have no longer any outlets. The inhabitants consist almost exclusively of priests, monks, and their attendants. The churches of Lalibala are the most remarkable in Abyssinia, each being hewn out of a block of basalt, with altars, sculptures, and columns complete. Unfortunately the rock has been weathered in many places, and of the monolith peristyle of one of the finest churches nothing survives but four columns. The buildings of Lalibala evidently belong to various periods, but it seems certain that most of these monuments must be attributed to the king whose name is preserved by the city, the Abyssinian "St. Louis," who reigned at the beg^ning of the thirteenth century.. The work- men who carved out these curious subterranean churches are traditionally stated to have been Christian refugees from Egypt. >■: :: xv-'' EOBBU — GURA — SOKOTA. ;. . > ^ / v East of Lalibala, the depressions of numerous passes, running over the Abyssi- nian border-chain into the Angpot and Zebul countries, contain the waters of the picturesque lakes Ardibbo, Haib, and Ashango. In this region of altei-nate forests and pasture-lands are several large villages wherein the sovereigns of Abyssinia have often resided. A convent, formerly one of the richest in Abyssinia, stands on the woody " Island of Thimder " in Lake Hal'k. On the bank of this lake is the village of Debra-Man'am, chiefly occupied by the priests' wives, who are not allowed to visit their husbands in the monastery. The waters of the lake were inhabited by a solitary hippopotamus at the time of Lefebvre's visit, respected by the natives and dreaded by navigators. Lower down, on the eastern slope of the Ked Sea, stand the large markets of Kobbo, Qura, and Wa/dia, frequented alike by Abyssinians and Gallas, and described by Lefebvre as veritable towns. Sokota, capital of the province of Wag, stands at a height of 7,600 feet, north of the Lasta Mountains, on both banks of the River Bilbis, which flows to the Takkazeh through the Tsellari. Sokota is a commercial town, as till recently ":5«ssa^w^ ADUA. 171 the place iu revenge Simen are lands" of monks. is another a spur of regularities nd Byzan- t of Olives, and many ees which, 3 make this rsely popu- its imder- sist almost jalibala are Ntsalt, with L has been E the finest a evidently Lments must Abyssinian The work- mally stated the Abyssi- raters of the mate forests >f Abyssinia sinia, stands this lake is who are not le lake were respected by slope of the ited alike by feet, north flows to the till recently attested by its Mohammedan settlers. The Agau, who form the basis of the local population, are not sufficiently enerf^etio to trade or work the coalfields in the neighbourhood. The market of SoiillMiliiiit KM.u kum mi'^AS^ here and J roof like jitect. In md Syria, aits driven ed by the iwn Prince lUiperor of )ire at one n, although gl :3i 14' 10' 14' 5, y where the actuary more )y eight hun- ter the same 2 miles from ere its groups ich clothe the basalt walls, p to tradition, ierior in rank he " tables of ■A 1 1 AK8UM. 178 the law," and of the holy ark of the Jews brought back from Jerusalem by Menelik, son of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. But Aksum possesses some genuine antiquities, which the inhabitants watch over with jealous care. A column bears a Greek inscription, now almost illegible, which commemorates the victims of a certain King Aeizanas, " son of the invincible Ar^s." Is this Aeizanas identical with La San, the Christian king who lived in the middle of the fourth century of the vulgar era, or did he belong to the earlier pagan dynasty, as might be supposed from his claim to the title of the son of Mars P Howsoever this Fig. Ho. — Akhvm. Soale 1 : 90,000. > 1,100 Taida. be, this precious inscription, reproduced for the first time by the explorer Salt, is a proof of the ancient relations existing between Abyssinia .and the Greek world. Another column, discovered by Ferret and Galinier, is engraven with Himyaritic characters, also nearly effaced by time. According to D'Abbadie's reading it per- petuates the memory of the valiant " Halen, king of Aksimi and of Hamer," that is to say, of the country of the Himyarites. South-western Arabia and Ethiopia formerly constituted one empire. On the plateau of Aksum, near an enormous sycamore whose trunk is 50 feet in circumference, stacds another curious monument, which has been appealed to in proof of an ancient Egyptian culture in Abyssinia. I 11 174 NOKTH-EAST AFRICA. It is a monolithic obelisk some 83 feet high, but of a style entirely different from that of the Egyptian obelinks. Its ornamentation consists of a nine-storied tower pierced with windows and surmounted with a small pyramid with fluted base, curved and spherical sides. About fifty other obelisks are scattered over the neighbouring space, some fallen down, others leaning against the trunks of the trees, with nncient altars still standing amidst these ruins. Not far off unfinished carvings are still to be seen in the trachytic quarry whence the workmen obtained the materials for these obelisks. Amongst its other buildings Aksum also possesses, in the enclosure of its gedem or sanctuary, a Portuguese church flanked by an embattled tower. An aqueduct is cut in the rook, and close to the town the side of a mountain is under- mined by catacombs which are said to be the tombs of the kings, and the place where " the great serpent, the ancient King of Abyssinia, is concealed." Antalo — Senafeh. /' ■ Antalo, the former capital of Tigr^, is situated at a height of some 8,000 feet, on an amba surrounded by deep gorges, where rise the affluents of the Takkazeh. A higher plateau, crowned by the natural fortress of the Aradom amba, rises to the west, whilst to the south and east stretches the vast fertile plain on which the English established their head-quatters during the expedition of 1868. Antalo has since been abandoned, and its quarters, ^parated from each other by deep ravines, are nearly all in ruins ; its inhabitants have mig^ted to Chalikui, about 6 miles to the north-east, one of the most charming towns in Abyssinia, its houses and churches surrounded by gardens and thick masses of trees. • Situated on the border-chain of eastern Abyssinia, at the very fringe of the terrace-lands sloping to the plain of the Danakils, Antalo and Chalikut are of some importance as depots for the salt merchants passing from the country of the Taltals to Sokota. Between this latter town and Chalikut the chief marts are Samreh, situated near the former lacustrine plain of Samra; then the lowland towns of Atahi, or Absebidera, and Fisho. The new town of Makaleh has been built by the present negus on the very crest of the Abyssinian chain, and like Debra-Tabor, Adua, and Magdala, occasion'ally serves as a temporary capital of the kingdom. Here an Italian engineer has erected a palace in the " European " style of architec- ture. From this commanding site King Johannes overlooks a large portion of the still unreduced Danakil territory. He has even made some conquests in these low- lands, and on one of the four terraces, which fall in a series of gigantic steppes down to the plain, he has foimded the market of Srket, much frequented by dealers in salt. North of Antalo and Chalikut, and parallel to the border chain of Abyssinia, several other commercial towns follow at long intervals on the main road which connects the uplands with the forts of Zulla and Massawah. Some of these miser- able collections of huts have acquired a certain importance in the history of Abys- sinian exploration as the camping-grounds and places of observation of European travellers. One of the most populous of these villages is Hatmen, situated on a "'T.^Simi^S'^^^ti^ma. M^ i W .'a ii^ ANTALO -SENAPPUl. 175 rent from ried tower ise, curved ghbouring th jincient are still to terials for 3 enclosure tower. An is under- the place 8,000 feet, Takkazeh. rises to the which the Antalo has ep ravines, 6 miles to louses and nge of the are of some the Taltals re Samreh, d towns of (uilt by the ebra-Tabor, B kingdom, of architec- rtion of the I these low- itic steppes 1 by dealers mia, road which ihese miser- •y of Abys- f European uatod on a plateau intersected by deep ravines. Farther on comes Addigrai {^AcUC Igrnt) or Attegm, Htanding in a fertile valley about 8,000 feet above the level of the sea, and commanded we^t and south-west by heights rising to a still farther elevation of over 3,000 feet. To the west, on a sandstone amba whose terminal escarpment, some 100 feet high, can be scaled only by means of ropes, lies the monastery of Debra-Damo, one of the most Fig. 66.— KvMAiLi Vali.it. BobI* 1 : aBO,000. celebrated in Abyssinia, Here uU the surrounding populations come to deposit their wealth on the least indication of war. The summit of this rock, covered with a vegetable soil and provided with one hundred and fifty peren- nial wells, although carefully cul- tivated, yields but an insufiBcient crop, BO that the monks have to trust to the generosity of the faithful on the plains. Formerly 'he younger members of the reigning house were banished to this amba. Senqfeh, a town situated still farther north, occupies a sheltered position at the foot of precipitous rocks. As the first mountain sta- tion on the route followed by the English army to rescue the pri- soners in the hands of Theodore, the camp of Senafeh, during the campaign of 1868, was one of the greatest strategic importance. When the English carriage road, from Adulis Bay to Senafeh through the gorges of Kumaili is repaired, this village will pro- bably become a flourishing city. To the west Haldi, or the " ascent," which was till recently entirely Catholic, and Digm [Digsan) are the first upland towns on either branch of the river Hadas, and have also gained a place in the history of Abyssinian exploration. The capital of Tigr^ is connected with the Bed Sea coast by two routes. The shortest runs north-east towards Senafeh ; the other takes a northern direction, crossing the Mareb at an elevation of about 4,000 feet, and thence ascending the 5Q*SC' E . of Greenwich S9'40- Depthi. OtoSSXtet. SSU>64Feet, (MFMtaad upmudi. ISMilM. ^'^^^^^m' '' mm 176 NOfiTH-EAST AFRICA. valley of this river along the heights of the western slope. North of the point whore the river is croHscd the oHcurpmonts of the plhtcuu un; broken into buHult headlands, columns, utid peaks of fantastic shape. On these detached crags are tlie scattered villages belonging to Qundot, a district famous in African history. Hero began the series of military disasters which, combined with financial loans and extortions, crushed the power of Egypt, making the country the sport of bankers and European diplomatists. At this period ( 1875) the Khedive of Cairo was one of the great potentates of the world so far as regarded the extent of his dominions. His captains hod penetrated up the Nile as far as Lake Albert Nyanza and the watershed of the Congo. Egyptian garrisons had been stationed at the ports on the west coast of the Red Sea, and even farther south had gained a firm footing in the Harrar district and Soraaliland. The invaders had already enclosed Abyssinia on the south, and thought the time had come to take possession of the plateau ; but they were utterly routed at the battle of Qudda-Quddi, or Oundef. Nearly the whole of the invading army perished, together with itd two leaders, Arakel Bey and the Dane Arendrup. The invasion, which was to have once for all reduced Abyssinia, restored its political unity from Hamassen to Shoa, and revived Christianity throughout the whole of this upland region, which seemed already a prey to Islam. In 1876 a second army, commanded by Hassan, son of the Khedive, again scaled the Hamassen plateau and occupied the strong strategic position of Gura, east of the Upper Mareb. But the lower part of their camp being surrounded by enemies, the Egyptian troops were almost entirely exter- minated. They left their cannons and small-arms on the battlefield, and Prince Hassan only succeeded in obtaining his liberty by paying a heavy ransom. Ac- cording to a report, which appears however to have been groundless, circulated immediately after the battle, Hassan and all the other prisoners were tattooed on the arm with the sign of the cross, a symbol of victory over the cresoont. • Debaroa — Kasen — Arkilo. " : '■ &' . "vt&' -''*v- The most populous and commercial town on the route from Adua to Massawah, by way of the western slope of the Upper Mareb, is Kodo Felassi (^Oodo Fe/as»ieh), capital of the province of Seraweh. As a trading station it has replaced the town of Deharoa, farther to the north, which, although now of little importance, was formerly the residence of the Bahr-Nagash, or " Sea Kings," as the governors of the maritime provinces were called. Unlike the round houses of Central Abys- sinia, with their stone walls and thatched roofs, those of Debaroa are partly subterranean, resembling the dwellings in many districts of Caucasia and Kurdis- tan. The slope of the mountain is cut into steps, and the rectangular space thus obtained is transformed into ». house by means of a clay roof, which at the back rests on the ground, and in front is supported by pillars ; the smoke escapes by means of an aperture made in the roof, which is closed in rainy weather, excluding light and air^ and converting the dwelling into a loathsome cavern. The houses of all the Hamassen villagpes are constructed in this fashion. tuautmii mam •^mmmfm'mm DEBAROA— KA8EN. 177 f the point into bamilt (1 crags aro can history. inciiil loans he sport of ive of Cairo fctent of his jake Albert len stationed lad gained a had already e possession da-Ouildi, or nrith itd two was to have jsen to Shoa, rhich seemed kssan, son of >ng strategic : their camp tirely exter- , and Prince ansom. Ao- 188, circulated ) tattooed on to Massawah, do Felassieh), teed the town )ortance, was governors of /entral Abys- la are partly , and Eurdis- ar space thus 1 at the back :e escapes by er, excluding The houses The camp of the ras, or chief, who governs the province of TigTi , aituftt i at Atmgn (0,460 feet), at the junction of the routes ascending from le 0(> ..st ut Massawah, and from the countries of the Bog^s and Mcnsas. A 8hort iMtunoe to the east stands the town of Aumara, present residence of a shuin, < hief, who claims the title of " King of llie Sea." Asmara lies on the extreme edge of the Abyssinian plateau, at the point where the route entering on the Red Sea water- shed winds down to the plain. Like Asmara, a few other hamlets serve as intermediary stations for the caravans on their arrival at the crest of the Tigr^ plateau. Kaaen, standing on the last spur of the Hamossen uplands north-west of Asmara, also commands one of the routes leading to Massawah. This post is occasionally dimly visible at a distance of 45 miles in a straight line between the haze of the horizon and the marine vapours. Vig. 67.— Booos TcBBiTouT. 8«ai« 1 ■ iino,ixin. 38'CC' E ■ of Greegwich 38M0- • 9MUn. From Easen another caravan route runs north-west to the Senhit uplands, and to Keren, capital of the Bogos territory. This place, surrounded by olive-groves, already lies in the kwalla zone at a height of 4,800 feet above the sea. A fortress named Senhit, like the country itself, has been built by the Egyptians at the side of the town ; but in virtue of the treaty concluded with the English it is to be evacuated and surrendered to the King of Abyssinia. Keren was the centre of the Catholic missions in northern Abyssinia, and its large seminary supplied numerous native priests for the churches scattered throughout the provinces of the empire. Nearly all the inhabitants of the Bogos and Mensa territories have abandoned their Mahommedan practices to re-embrace the Christian religion as taught in its new form by the Lazarist missionaries. The route descending from Asmara to the Red Sea, encircles on the north a group of projecting uplands, on one of which stands the famous monastery of Bijan 12— AF. 178 N0UT11-KA8T AFBIOA. or Piaan, founded in tho fourtwnth contury, und often mentioned by Portufpi*"© authorH under tho name of tho convent of tho " ViHion." It takes this nuuie from a gilded cloud miid to huvo l)oon nocn hovering in mid uir by tho truvoUor I'oncot And other pilgriniH in the year 1700. Nourly a thouwiud monk* live in tho convent and the adjacent buihlingH. At the foot of tho mountainn, but Roparuted from tho littoral plain by a chain of hillfl, atanda tho village of Ai/rf, in a lonely valley which would amply repay cultivation. In the ncighbourhmMl, three miles further south, are hot springs (L')8° F.) sufHciently copious to form a stream; the surrounding ground within a radius of 155 feet from the oriiico is too hot to permit of its being traversed barefooted. When descending the plateau the Abyssiniuns are accustomed to plunge into the source of the river Allot, and even occasionally to wash their sheep in it. A poisonous beetle lives in a part of the hot spring where tho temperature cools down to 118° F. Northwards in the Samhar district aro many ancient ruins, chiefly tombs, some of which resemble the megalithio monuments of Franco. An ancient town, now abandoned, at one timo covered a space of several miles in oir- cumferenoe. • Massawah. On the plain a few stations follow along the route to the coast at Massawah. Such are Saati, or the " Fens," ao-called from the pools of water which are usually found in the beds of the dried-up watercourses during the dry season ; M'Kulu, which the Europeans of Massawah have chosen as their health-resort, and have surrounded with groves of tamarinds and other trees ; Hotumlu, headquarters of the Swedish missionaries and their schools. To the south, nestled amidst mimosa-trees, is the town of Arkilo, a kind of capital, where resides the naib, a descendant of a dynasty of chiefs who, since the end of the sixteenth century, have negotiated all commeroial transactions between Abyssinia and Massawah. The inhabitants of this territory owe a double allegiance to the traders of the neighbouring seaport and to the Abyssinians of the plateau, whose claim to the ownership of the lowlands has been maintained from age to age, and annually renewed by raising winter crops in the district. The Turks, having conquered the uplands and the coast in 1557, attempted at first to govern tho coast populations directly ; but finding themselves powerless against nomads ever on the move, they surrendered their authority to the chief of the Belaus, a branch of the Hababs who roamed over the neighbouring plains. Even the garrison of Massawah, mainly composed of Bosniaks, was gradually absorbed with the Hababs by marriage. Made naib, or " lieutenant," of the viceroys of Hejaz, the chief of the Belau received a regular subsidy from the Turkish Government conditionally on his protecting the Turkish oi* Abyssinian caravans against the attacks of the neighbouring tribes, remitting to the suzerain a portion of the taxes paid by the merchants, and supplying the island with the necessary water. Frequent quarrels arose between the na'ib and the Massawah islanders ; the aqueducts were often cut, and the naib himself, driven from Arkilo, was often "--■aa aB BaaaaasM S sMt^ - •mmm/^mmum MASHAWAII. 170 r PortugiiOM) M nuinu fn>m ^t'Uor Poncot L the convent n by a chain amply repay hot springs round within ng traversecl ccufltomed to h their sheep ) temperature uncient ruins, France. An miles in cir- at Massawah. ch are usually son; M'Kulu, ort, and have quarters of the I mimosa-trees, escendant of a negotiated all abitantsof this seaport and to le lowlands has gvinter crops in coast in 1557, ing themselves .uthority to the ) neighbouring 1, was gradually ' of the viceroys m the Turkish sinian caravans lerain a portion I the necessary iwah islanders; rkilo, was often obligorl to take refuge in the interior. It also happ««n«n to the outor world, huvo wastoil the country to rotuliiite on the Nluve- dealers and corsuirs. By virtue of recent treaties, tho upprourh to MiwMiiwuh, now an Italian port, although the Egyptian flag still flies on tho woUs, is to bo mudo Fig. 48. — Mamawah. B«U 1 ; 100,000. > 1 - 5e'85 L . o1 GrttowicK •59'B7- Daptha. ton Feat. ntoSOVeet SOTeetmidupwai^i. , »i MilM. completely free to the trade of Abyssinia. This port of the Red Sea is therefore, it not politically at least commercially, more than ever a natural dependency of Abyssinia, and its importance, already considerable, cannot fail to increase rapidly if peace is maintained on the plateaux. Detached forts command the approaches of the town and mark the limits of an intrenched camp in which the Egyptian governor formerly maintained a corps of 3,000 troops. I m i^-jjape- \ '' jiy >'i> ^>ii^ '' ;y i' jiyj^^ '■- ■ •• "■ • ' -• ■■ v- 180 NORTH-EAST AFBICA. The town of Massawah, the Arahian Medsawa, or Muasawah, and the Abyssinian Mutogna, occupies a coral islet about 3,300 feet long from east to west, but scarcely more than 1,000 feet broad from north to south. Stone houses of Arab con- struction, and branch huts, are crowded together on this rock, which is connected by a dyke with the still smaller island of Taulud. Taulud itself is attached to the mainland by means of a pier about 5,000 feet long, over which is carried the pipe by which the cisterns of Massawah are supplied with water from M'Eulu. But both aqueduct and pier, like the barracks, fortifications, and other buildings built some twenty years ago under the direction of Munzinger Pacha, are in a very dilapidated condition. As in their own country, the Egyptians understand the art of constructing, but neglect the duty of repairing, their public buildings. The Abyssinian trade with the Greek, Banian, and other foreign merchants settled at Massawah is conducted by means of caravans. These caravans, laden chiefly with the valuable products of the Galla country — cojEEee, gold, and white wax — set out at the end of winter, so as to cross the Takkazeh before the floods. They take two or three months to accomplish the journey, and return at the end of the autumn, resuming their annual journey the following spring. In 1861 the value of the Abyssinian exchanges, including slaves, through the port of Massawah, was estimated at £40,000, and twenty years thereafter, in 1881, they had risen to £280,000. The chief exports are skins and butter for Arabia, and mother-o'-pearl ; that of ivory has greatly fallen ofi. Mtiles of Abyssinian stock are also exported to the plantations of Mayotte and the Mascarenhas Islands. Early in the year 1885 Massawah and the surrounding district was occupied by the Italians, with the consent of the English and Egyptian Governments. ,;, ^ . .. .; I - - , The Dahlak Islands. The large coraline islands of Dahlak east of the Gulf of Massawah, the chief of which are Dahlak and Nora, have lost nearly all the commercial importance they enjoyed before the Turkish ride. At that time they were inhabited by a Christian population of Abyssinian origin, whose chapels are still to be seen, and whose dialect, although in a corrupt form, is still current in' the archipelago. At present the people, all Mohammedans, number 1,500, whose only resource is the milk and flesh of their goats, and the products of their fisheries. The Persian and Indian traders make yearly voyages to these islands to purchase the pearl oysters from the fisheries of the surrounding bays ; the dep6t stands on the eastern shore of the larger island, at the village of Domolo. Like the pearl-divers of Bahrein, those of Dahlak never commence operations till after the rains, as they say that the pearly secretion is formed by the mixing of the fresh with the salt water. The natives also fish for the turtle, but neglect the sponges with which the bed of the sea is here thickly covered. The people of Dahlak and the surroimding archipelago possess large herds of camels, asses, and goats, which they allow to roam in a wild state over the island, or else confine to desert islands. On one of these islets are even found a few cows. id the Abyssinian Brest, but scarcely es of Arab con- hich is connected s attached to the carried the pipe M'Kulu. But other buildings cha, are in a very nderstand the art buildings. The rchants settled at aden chiefly with B wax — set out at They take two or 1 of the autumn, the value of the Massawah, was hey had risen to [ mother-o'-pearl ; are also exported Y in the year 1886 [talians, with the assawah, the chief leroial importance re inhabited by a ill to be seen, and archipelago. , At ly resource is the The Persian and I the pearl oysters the eastern shore divers of Bahrein, i, as they say that h the salt water. 1 which the bed of the surrounding ich they allow to Ands. On one of m i»m mf > i. j .»i v -ms" — V— . i K -i.i . l K plW WW i lglW f f , i ^ i n iiii iu » jji i uj i ^ ^m ii JL ii Hh ^ tu^ J^it(l^J^ ^ | l J^^rt ^ j |p| ^ < l i |lig^ m w ' " " II X. iMR < ,MmmmmmK , mmiJm'm:mm»m 4$JlMSI I L9t K U&l llt Ma i m^ ADULIS— ZULLA -HANFlLA. IBl Adulis — Zvi.hA. — Hanvila. The long and narrow bay stretching from the north southwards some 30 miles inland, which the Disseh islanders call the " GuK of Velvet " possibly on account of the calmness of its well- sheltered waters, is much nearer to the upland Abys- sinian plateaux than Massawah, and the commercial exchanges have often taken this direction. This inlet of the seaboard, the Annesley Bay of the English, is more commonly known by the name of Adulis Bay, as it was called some two thousand years ago, when the fleets ,of the successors of Alexander rode at anchor in its waters. A Greek inscription, copied in the sixteenth century by the Egyptian monk Cosmas Indicopleustes, celebrates the great king Ptolemy, son of Ptolemy and " Arsinoe." A second, which relates the glorious expeditions of the Abyssinian king " Eb Aguda," is of the highest geographical importance, as it contains a series of twenty-three Abyssinian names, the first elements of the comparative geography of the country. Mariette has proved, by identif3ring many of the names engraved on the gates of Kamac with those of the Adulis inscription, that Egypt had certainly established relations with Abyssinia as far back as the time of Thotmes III., in the eighteenth century of the old era. A few capitals cut in the lava, and marbles sculptured by the Byzantine artists, ere all that has been brought to light of the buildings of the ancient city, which now stands more than three miles inland, a fact probably due to an upheaval of the coast, or else to the gradual increase of the alluvial deposits. Its ancient name still exists under the form of Zulh. To the south on the heights are the remains of a town, which was probably the sanitorium of Adulis. During the second half of this century Adulis has often been regarded as a future French colony, because the strip of land round the bay, together with the island of Disseh, was conceded to France in 1840 by a sovereign of Tigr6 ; but this written concession was followed by no act of occupa- tion, and England is the power which, under cover of the Egyptian flag, possesses this comer of Abyssinian territory. In no other region has Great Britain given a more striking proof of her widespread power than on this arid coast of the Red Sea. In this bay, where are scarcely to be seen a few wretched boats or fishing rafts composed of three boards nailed together, some hundreds of vessels rode at anchor in 1867 and 1868. A landing stage, of which a few traces still remain, stretched over half a mile into the sea; a railway ran southwards as far as the base of the escarpments ; and hug^ reservoirs, dug at the foot of the mountains, served as watering-places for the elephants and forty thousand beasts of burden. Zulla was the place where the British army landed and re-embarked, having brought to a happy conclusion an expedition without parallel in the history of England and modern times, not only for the justice of the cause and mathematical precision of the operations, but also for its complete success, almost without bloodshed, and the disinterested conduct of the victors. This march of an armed European force over the Abyssinian plateaux ended without conquest, and the traces of the passage of the English were soon effaced on the sands of Zulla. Nevertheless with this passing visit of the stranger begins a new era in Abyssinian history. '■T^j i 1» ' ii Mtji W:i»j« i | > |^f i Z i .» »ii ' l| f, fi >wi{ i | i , 182 NOETH-EAST AFRICA. The coast of the Red Sea, which is deflected in the direction of the south-east, is here and there indented by bays and creeks where sea-ports might be established, were the caravans unfortunately not compelled to traverse the burning and dan- Fig. 69. — ^Annbslbt Bat. 1 1 : 600,000. 59'5n' E .of Greenwich r.T50' V ' V DepttM. OtoSOFect SOtoieOFeet. 100 toSW Fart. ) Feet ud niiwBida. gerous Danakil territory before reaching the valleys of the Abyssinian watershed. The bay of Hawakil, explored by the English at the time of the Abyssinian expedition, is obstructed by volcanic cones surrounded by rocks and lavas very ian watershed, be AbyBsinian md lavas very ADMINI8TBATIVE DIVISIONS. 183 difficult to traverse. Hanfili, which is supposed to be the ancient port of Anti- phyllm, is useless except for working the saline lake Alalbed and the neighbouring pearl fisheries. The little harbour of Edd, some 120 miles from the Abyssinian chain, is also surrounded, like Hawakil Bay, by volcanoes and rugged rocks which render the coimtry almost inaccessible. A trading company of Nantes had acquired possession of this port, but, being unable to derive any advantage from it, offered it to the French Government, which declined the costly present. The company idtimately ceded all its rights to the Kbedive. Administrative Divisions. The political and administrative divisions of Abyssinia undergo endless changes according to the power of the vassals and the caprice of the sovereign. Certain chiefs rule over several provinces and even possess the title of king, like the r&s of Gojam, who was crowned in 1881, whilst others are fain to rest satisfied with a simple canton. In 1882 the largest fiefs numbered twenty-four, of which four were governed by r&s (chiefs) of the first rank, five by those of the second rank, and fifteen administered by chiefs bearing the title of shum. But in spite of the political vicissi- tudes, most of the Abyssinian districts have retained their names and their general contours, as indicated by the very relief and nature of the geological formations themselves. Without including the vassal realm of Shoa, the tributary states beyond the Abai, the Galla districts and the northern territories recently annexed, the Ayssinian empire at present comprises the four governments of Amhara, Gojam, Lasta, and Tigre, which, with their several provinces, fluvial basins, and chief towns, will be found tabulated in the Appendix. » »!l * ' r CHAPTER VII. SHOA, COUNTRY OF THE DANAKILS, NORTHERN OALLA STATES. < HOA or Shawa, and the hilly country of the northern Gallas, form a part of the Abyssinian plateaux. From a political point of view Shoa, after having been independent for some length of time, has again become attached and pays a regular tribute to the Abyssinian empire, the king of Shoa humbling himself before the "king of kings." South of the Aba'i most of the civilised or barbarous tribes have been subjugated to Northern Abyssinia by victorious expeditions, and ambassadors bring to Debra-Tabor or Makaleh a yearly tribute of ivory or other valuable commodities. On this side the whole of southern Abyssinia even beyond Eaffa is thus bounded by fluctuating frontiers ; tlie area of Shoa has been increased threefold, and the king- dom of Gojam has been enlarged in the same proportion, although the Aba'i interrupts all communications between Abyssinia and the country of the Ilm- Ormas for seven or eight months in the year. The peoples of these countries, mostly differing in origin, speech, religion, and customs, should be studied apart. The lowland tribes, however, comprised between the main Abyssinian range, the Red Sea coast, the Gulf of Aden, and the water- shed south of the basin of the Awash, form a group clearly defined by the way of life the soil and the climate compel them to follow ; but as intermediaries of the trade between the plateaux and the sea, they are indispensable to the inhabitants of Shoa. Thus, however different the two countries may be, they form a part of the same social organization. The Shoa Highlands. South of the Angot and the Zebul the main Abyssinian range penetrates into Shoa, here diverging slightly from the line of the meridian towards the south-west, parallel with the course of the Awash. This part of the border-chain is called Shakka, or Amba-Shakka, and, according to Beke, attains a mean height of from 8,000 to 9,000 feet, several of the crests even considerably exceeding this elevation. The highest mountain, at least in the vicinity of Ankober, is Mount Metatiteh (11,000 feet), which overlooks the greater part of the kingdom of Shoa lying at nnm>wm^«< 'ES. illas, form a oint of Tiew of time, has i Abyssinian te "king of 8 have been Isadora bring commodities. I bounded by ind the king- |;h the Aba'i of the Ihn- religion, and rised between id the water- )y the way of liaries of the e inhabitants }nn a part of enetrates into le south-west, liain is called eight of from this elevation, int Metatiteh Shoa lying at VOLCANIC F0EMATI0N8. 181 its feet, and the lower terrace-lands sloping towards the Awash Yalloy and the affluents of the Aba'i. In no other region of Abyssinia is the land more cut up into distinct sections by the running waters. From some of the heights on the plateau the country seems at a distance like a vast and almost level plain, where the valleys are scarcely suggested by the interrupted vegetation, but on a nearer approach those valleys develop into vast chasms of enormous depth. One of those gorges, some 36 miles north-west of Ankober, is over 5,100 feet in depth, with a breadth scarcely exceeding 2,000 feet. Amongst the abysses occurring in this rocky region are Teg^let-Wat, near the ancient capital of Shoa, a fissure some 600 feet long with a breadth of less tl^an 3 feet. Stones dropped into this rent are never heard to strike the bottom. The riven rising on the eastern slope of the Amba-Shakka, some of which have to descend from an altitude of about 6,600 feet on their way to the Blue Nile, rush through these chasms in a series of foaming cascades or magnificent rapids. mj^:-^^^ "1 .>>: Volcanic Formations. East of the main range, the base of Amba-Shakka is flanked by a collection of rounded hills, while parallel chains, such as the Argobba, rise in its immediate vicinity. Farther on an undulating plain stretches away towards the Gulf of Aden, here and there studded with volcanic cones which have ejected vast quantities of lava. One of these extinct oratera, near the right bank of the Awash north-west of Ankober, forms a vast chasm many miles In circumference. Another much smaller crater still emits vapoura from the summit of an isolated crag ; this is the Dofaneh volcano, which lies on the left bank of the Awash some 36 miles north-east of Ankober. Its state of activity may be compared to that of Volcano in the Lipari Islands. On its sides are deposited layera of sulphur, pre- senting every shade from bright yellow to reddish brown. The group of Mintshar volcanoes, in the southern district of Fatigar, contains other craters in which the sulphur becomes sublimated. One of these igneous mouths, that of WiniEegur, forms an enormous caldron, according to Harris nearly 6 miles in circumference, with walls rising to a height of from 800 to 1,000 feet ; two breaches in the enclosure have fpyen vent to streams of molten lava and black scorise which wind amid the surrotmding vegetation. The pool of Burtshatta in the vicinity fills a circular bed of black and yellow lava surrounded by vertical clifEs ; the rock is honeycombed with hundreds of caves, whose entrances are half concealed by the climbing plants growing to its sides. Through one of the extinct craters the elephants and rhinoceroses have opened a passage to the brink of this lake. In the western district of Dembi, Antinori describes another volcanic group inter- spersed with numerous lakelets, but their water being de8ti\,ute of fish they are evidently of recent origin. Farther on to the south-west the isolated Zikwala peak, about 10,000 feet high, already mentioned on Fra Mauro's famous map, encloses a lake in its terminal crater, on the margin of which stands a monastery founded by a " vanquisher of demons." Many hot springs rise in these volcanic ml 11 il! 'I !> »i 186 NORTU-EAST APEICA. lands of Shoa, three of which in the country of the Finfini Gallos, close to the lofty and isolated Mount Entotto (9,956 feet), spout forth like geysers with a temperature of 170° F. To the action of these warm mineral waters are probably due the fossilised siliceous trees occurring in so many places on the plateau between Lasta and Shoa. Like the " petrified forests " of Cairo, those of Abyssinia consist of trees belonging to the order of the sterculiaceeo. The Galla Highlands. \ A ridge of uplands, curving to the south-west, and separating the Abal' from the sources of the Awash, forms the natural boundary between Abyssinia proper and Gallaland. This region is but slightly diversified, presenting no prominences except those of the cliffs fringing both sides of the torrents ; but to the south the moimtains resume the appearance of a regular chain. They must be regarded, however, rather as a gpeneral swelling of the surface broken into distinct segments and isolated masses by the rivers flowing northwards towards the Blue Nile, and southwards to the larg^ river known as the Gugsa, Uma, Abula, and by a thousand other names. By the action of the erosions which have broken up the plateau into its present shape, the axis of these heights has been directed from the north- west to the south-east. In this direction follow in succession Goro Chen, Belhella, Tulu Amara, Chillimo, Diriko, Ealo, and Hoggeh, all mountains exceeding 10,000 feet in height. The highest point at the eastern ei.tremity of this range is said to be Hamdo, with a reputed elevation of not less than 11,500 feet. In the same direction, but in the Gurageh district, occurs the isolated Mount Wariro, to which Chiarini has assigned an. altitude of 13,000 feet. The mountainous masses bounded north by the course of the Upper Gug^ are considerably lower, having a mean elevation of scarcely more than 7,000 or 8,000 feet. Nevertheless a range in the Inarya district, running from the north-east to the south-west, rises here and there to 10,000 feet, culminating in Mount Egan, 10,300 feet high. In the KafFa country, another chain, bounded north by the river Gojeb, rivals the Gurageh Mountains in height ; and Mount Hotta, towards the eastern extremity of this chain, is said to have an altitude of about 12,200 feet. But the giant of the Ilm-Orma territory is said to be Mount Wosho, situated west of the river IJma, in the hitherto unexplored Waratta country. According to Antoiue d'Abbadie, who saw it at a distance. of twenty miles, towering above the valley of the Uma, this mountain exceeds 16,600 feet. A. The Afar Country. The country of Afars, east of the Abyssinian border-chvin, usually designated as a plain in opposition to the plateaux, has however a very hilly and even moun- tainous surface in some places. In the volcanic chain which bounds the depression of Lake Alalbed stand the Mount Ortoaleh of Munzinger, and another " Smoky Mountain " seen by Bianchi diiring his vain attempt to reach Assab by descending THE AWASH BASIN. 187 to the lofty temperature bly due the iween Lasta consist of e Abal' from iinia proper irominences he south the ie regarded, let segments ue Nile, and Y a thousand the plateau L the north- en, Belhella, Bding 10,000 rang^ is said In the same iro, to which ler Gugu are ,000 or 8,000 north-east to tfount Egan, aorth by the otta, towards ibout 12,200 )unt Wosho, itta country, les, towering designated as even moun- le depression iher *• Smoky Y descending from Makaleh. South-west of the Bay of Assab, the irregular volcanic Mussali Mountain is stated to attain a height of more than 6,600 feet ; lastly a border range, skirting the north side of Tajurah Bay, is dominated by cones from which lavas have been erupted. Mount Juda, one of these extinct volcanoes, attains a height of some 3,000 feet above sea-level ; it throws off a southern spur, whose reefs have almost separated into two parts the bed of the gulf, which thus forms an inner lake rather than a part of the Indian Ocean. To the west other lava streams have entirely covered what was formerly the marine bed, and have thus cut off a portion of the bay, which has become Lake Assal, or as the Arabs ironi- cally call it, in spite of the saltness of its waters, " The Lake of Honey." It is also probable that the upheaval of the land has contributed somewhat to the isolation of this sheet of water, for the seaboard in the vicinity of Tajurah is largely com- posed of calcareous clays containing, to a height of from 130 to 160 feet, fossil shells similar to those now living in the African seas. "-< Lake Assal, at present separated from Tajurah Bay by a ledge some 12 miles long, has undergone various changes analogous to those of I^ake Alalbed. It has also become a saline reservoir, and the crust of salt surrounding the shallows is so thick that laden camels can traverse it for nearly a mile from the bank. Like that of Lake Alalbed, the salt of this lake is a source of wealth to the neighbouring tribes. All the Afar and Somali peoples of the country here procure the supplies for their own consumption and for south Abyssinia, which gives them in exchange coffee, ivory, musk, and slaves. Like Alalbed, this lake is gradually subsiding, the waters brought down by the wadies being insufBioient to replace the loss by evaporation. A whitish mark some 50 feet above the present surface of the lake indicates a former water level. At the time of Rochet's first journey to Shoa in 1834 it stood 600 feet below that of Tajurah Bay ; since then its level has been variously calculated at from 676 to 770 feet, with a probable depth of about 130 feet. According to Bianohi numerous other depressions are found in the country of the Afars, some 660 feet below the level of the sea. The Awash Basin. South-west of Lake Assal, in a region similarly studded with volcanoes and lava beds, are other lakes, but of fluvial origin, belonging to the basin of the Awash or Awasi. Unlike the other rivers of the coimtry, the Awash does not disappear in de^ narrow gorges. Whilst those watercourses sweep away the fertile soil along their banks, the Awash, which flows towards the Indian Ocean, wa1«rs its valley like the Egyptian Nile, without, however, reaching the coast. Like the Raguleh and other streams of the Afar country, it runs dry, notwithstanding the large volume of its middle course. The Awash rises south-west of the Shoa Alps, in the Finfini district, which is separated from the Nilotic basin by a mountain range. Its sources form several pools communicating with each other by several channels winding through a grassy district. Already broad and deep, the river sweeps round the mountains of Shoa, and after receiving a part of their drainage, it trends north- 188 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. I ! I 'P wards along the foot of the main Abyminian mountain range. At this part of its course the stream is most copious even during the dry season, being everywhere over 160 feot broad, with a depth of more than 3 feet., and a very rapid course. During the floods the \wash overflows for many miles right and left of its bed, its level rising from 40 to 46, and even to 60 feet, above the usual watennark. It might possibly be available even for steam navigation in this part of its course. At the point where it is deflected from the mountains, the river flows north-east- wards towards Taj uroh Bay, and its volume is increased by its affluent, the Oermana, or Easam, but afterwards g^radually diminished, and at about 60 miles from the sea, after having traversed a distance of 480 miles, it loses itself in the marshy lake Bada, or Aussa, also called Abhelbod by many writers. This lacustrine basin, which probably lies below sea-level, rises and falls with the alternating rainy and dry seasons. Its waters are sweet, and deposit a fertilising mud, which repays a hundredfold the agricultural labour expended upon it by the Danakils of Aussa. The water necessary for the irrigation of the fields in summer is retained by a dam constructed at its northern end ; but when the lands are thoroughly watered the overflow is discharged into a basin called " Lake Natron " from the crystallised chemical substances on its banks. Other lakes belonging to the Awash system, amongst others that of Leado, commanded by the Dofaneh volcano and Jebel-Eubret or " Sulphur Mountain," not far from the Abyssinian Alps, receive the overflow of this river during the flood season. Lake Zwai, Jilalu, Laki or Dambal, in the Gurag^h country, probably belongs also to the same hydrographic system, and its surplus waters are said to flov^^ into the Awash. Nevertheless, the natives informed Antonelli and Cecchi, that this basin had no aLuent ; henoe its Ethiopian name of Zwai, or the " Motionless." ^ i:i: Climate, Flora, and Fauna. The climate of this southern portion resembles that of the rest of Abyssinia, the only difference being that the air is more moist. The Shoa and Galla uplands, being nearer to the equator, are much more affected by the rainy zone, which lying between the two trade winds, fluctuates alternately north and south of the equator. Whilst the mean rainfall on the Abysninian plateaux may be oalcidated at 30 inches annually, it is said to be about 40 inches south of the Aba'i and Awash. Hence the vegetation is far more dense and exuberant in the southern than in the northern regions of Abyssinia. Tvhilst forests are rarely met in Abyssinia outside of the kwaUa districts, travellers in the mountains oi Shoa and its tributary territories speak of the immense forests of conifers, wild olives, and other trees, under the matted moss-grown branches of which they have travelled for hourn. The vegetable species of these countries have hitherto been studied but by few botanists ; but the climate is known to be favourable to the Abyssinian flora, and many other plants flourishing here are utilised for the soke of their leaves, gums, or seeds. This home of the coffee-plant could still supply the world with many other precious shrubs ; it already yields to commerce the so-called oggieh, or korarima, a fruit highly prized for its delicate flavour and aroma. CLIMATE, PI.ORA, AND FAUNA. lit pert of it! everywhere apid course. I its bed, its k. It might e. 8 north-east- ;he Qermana, :rom the sea, marshy lake basin, which iny and dry ich repays a [Is of Aussa. led by a dam ' watered the ) crystallised nrash system, Jebel-Eabret le overflow of imbal, in the stem, and its Lves informed pian name of Abyssinia, the hdla uplands, B, which lying f the equator, id at 30 inches ii. Hence the . the northern outside of the irritories speak ,er the matted The vegetable mists ; but the ly other plants Is. This home lous shrubs ; it i highly prized Like the flora, the fauna of this Abyssinian district also presonti a great diver- sity, although on the whole the types are similar. Shoa appears to bo the home of the colubut guereza, an ape with a splendid black and white fur, which gives it a monkish appearance. The superstitious natives regard these animals almost as hrrraits, in consequence of their shy habits and the colour of their coats. In the Awash basin ore also found oxen, distinguished beyond all others for the size of their horns, which attain a length of some six feet, with a thickness of six inches at the base. The upland prairies are overrun by a zebra, equut Qrevyi, with Pig. 60.— Rotrras op tns Cmiip ExptoKn* in tmi Lokim Awaib Bioioir. E of 6r«en»vich . WMilM. extremely curious purple-black stripes. The Galla hcrse, which dies if taken far from its native mountains, has the thin legs, delicate head, full and shapely crupper, and the fire and obstinacy foimd amongst the pure Russian breeds. The animal most appreciated in Southern Abyssinia, from an economical point of view, is the civet cat (civetta viverra), whose musky secretion is monopolised by many of the sovereigns of the country. The males, who alone furnish this essence, are kept in packs of from one to three hundred, each animal being enclosed in a long cage made so narrow as to prevent him turning round ; the #' Swi^J*; MMtiai 100 N0IITII-EA8T AFRICA. encloRuros aro kept at a unifonn heat, §o an to huiiten the aecrotion, which amountu to froMi about eighty to one hundred gruinmos every fourth day. The animulH are fed on un oxcluHively flesh diet, connisting of choica morHoU prepared in buttei'. To ^.rcvent the evil eye, straugera are forbidden to enter these preserves. Inuaditanth ok Siioa. Like those of (jioudur, the civilised Christian peoples of Shoa are mainly Amharinians, but they are separated from the body of the nation by lofty mountains. Whilst most of the Abyssinians live on the lands sloping towards the Blue Nile, those of Shoa occupy more especially the watershed of the Awash, a tributary of the Red Sea. Moreover, a larg^ part of the plateau bounding Shoa towards the north is inhabit^ by peoples of Oalla origin. Hence, from an ethnological point of view, Shoa consists of a sort of isolutcxl promontory. The Abyssinians, properly so called, are hero surrounded by the Ilm-Ormas, by far the most numerous, but divided into several tribes, the alliances between which are broken or formed according either to momentous interests or the caprices of the chiefs. The cuHtoms of the Shoa peoples are the same as those of the Amhari- nians, with this difference, that the entire population is more abjectly subject to the king's will. There are few slaves properly so called, and the Christians are for- bidden to sell the Negroes, although they themselves are little better than slaves whose property and lives are at the disposition of their masters. A few Felasha or Fenja communitios are scattered throughout Shoa, and amongst these Abyssinian Jews is usually classed the sect of the Tabiban, which possesses a monastery in the immediate vicinity of Ankober, in the midst of the Emamret forests. They are greatly respected and feared by the surrounv'Iing peoples as wizards. As in Abyssinia properly so-called, the Shoa Mahommedans have been forcibly converted. They were formerly very numerous, and the name of Jiberti, by which they are known throughout Abyssinia, is a reminiscence of their holy city of Jabarta in Ifat, which has since disappeared. Foreigners, more especially French and Italians, are relatively numerous in Shoa, and aince the visits of Rochet, Lefebvre, Harris, CombeA and Tamisier, Isenberg and Erapf, hundreds of missionaries, artisans, and merchants have presented themselves in the nomad court of the successors of Sehla Sellosieh ; but hitherto the natives have benefited little by the European inventions. Powder and arms manufactories and mills have not succeeded, and the concessions made to strangers for the building of railways is merely a proof that the king of Shoa is desirous of entering into direct relations with bia powerful foreigpi allies. Scientific voyagcn of discovery in the Galla country, interrupted since that (;£ the missionary Fernandez in the seventeenth century till the time of Antoine d' Abbodie, are also becoming more frequent, thanks to the extension of the Abyssinian power into these countries ; but it is still a dangerous undertaking, and of the two Italians, Chiarini and Cecchi, who recently penetrated as far as Bongo, one succumbed to fatigue, whilst the other was with difficulty saved by the intervention of the chief of "SS^ilS^^^^^^SSfSS^Sfc " TIIK AFAIW. Itl W' ch amountfl 'ho aniniulH jrepurwl in proHorvos. are mainly •n by lofty ing towards hed of the the plateau pn. Hence, promontory. •rmas, by far tween which i caprices of the Amhari- ubject to the ians are for- r than slaves )w Felasha or le Abyssinian Lastery in the 9. They are been forcibly f Jiberti, by leir holy city >rc especially the visits of , hundreds of ) nomad court lenefited little nills have not )f railways is rect relations ice that of the ne d' Abbadie, jsinian power i two Italians, succumbed to of the chief of Oojum. The object of d'Abbudie's visit to those countrioH, which was to complcttdy ■urvoy the course of the southern AbyMsiniuu river, has not yet be««n aucoinpliHhed. It is not known whether, after (h'seribing the lurj^o curve east of Kutfu, the wiit<>r- courso which fonns a continuation of the Gugsu und receives the Gojttb trends westwards to the Nil© or is deflet-ted towards the Indian Ocean, but it probably falls eastwards as the upper course of the Jubu. In any cuso it is nut the Nile, as d'Abbudiu supposed. Thk Afars. In the triangular space comprised between the Abyssinian range, the Red Hea, and the course of tho Awash, the bulk of the people, whether nomad or settled, constitute tho Afar, or Afer, that is to say the " wanderers," more commonly called Danukils by tho Abyssinians. In the vicinity of the Awash they are known as Adel, or Aduil, after the Ad-Ali, one of their most powerful tribes ; but the various clans differ little in customs, dialects; and usages. The Danakils themselves claim to be Arabs, like so many other peoples of eastern Africa, and this pretension may be explained both by local crossings as well as by their nominal conversion to Islam. But there can be no doubt that the main body of the nation is connected with the Oallas of the west, the Shohos of the north, and the Somalis of the south. Their language is also of Hamitio origin, and their physical appearance is of an analogous type. They are still mainly addicted to fetish practices, in the sterile region of Lake Alalbed worshipping a solitary tree, the ceesalpinia, with splendid pink flowers, and elsewhere presenting their offerings to the sycamore. The men are usually handsome, extremely active and graceful dancers; while the women, who go unveiled, are distinguished during their brief youth by exquisite forms. But their beauty is soon blighted by their laborious life in this country of lava and sand, under the hottest climate in the world. More scantily clothed than the Abyssinians or Gallas, the Danakils merely wear a waistcloth of a many-coloured material, with a toga or shamma, often replaced by a skin thrown negligently over the shoulders. The men stick a porcupine-quill in their deftly arranged coiffure, and, like the Oallas, are extremely proud when they can ornament it with an ostrich feather, emblem of an enemy slain in battle. In the northern region, the huts of the Afars are \ery tastefidly ornamented, the floor being covered with yellow mats, embroidered with red and violet designs. The Afars are an independent nation, divided into two main groups, the Asahian (Asa'imara) and the Adohian (Adoimara), and into upwards of one hundred and fifty Kabilet (Eabail) or sub- tribes, banded together or divided according to their several interests. They recognise hereditary chiefs, called sultans or rat, according to the importance of the tribe. These chiefs, however, are by no means absolute masters, but merely the executors of the will of the people, expressed by a majority of votes in the general assemblies. All combine against the common enemy, and fight desperately in defence of their liberty. The most powerful sept are the Modaitos, occupying the whole of the region of the lower Awash, Lake Aussa, and the inland pasturages between Edd and Raheita. No European traverses their if r~-' J Ki^ 192 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. , territory without claiming the right of hospitality or the brotherhood of blood ; the two newly made brothers kill an ox and pour the blood over their foreheads, cutting its skin in strips, which they make into necklaces and bracelets. About 1840 the Zeila Arabs, reinforced by immigrants from Yemen, and Persian or Baluch mercenaries, penetrated into the Danakil country nearly as far as Aussa, but not one of the invaders returned. In 1875 an enemy more formidable than the coast Arabs attempted to force his way into their territory. At the head of 350 Egyptians armed with improved rifles and a train of artillery, Munzinger Pasha endeavoured to open a route towards Shoa, his intention probably being to reduce this kingdom under the sc^ereignty of Egypt. But the same Moda'ito tribe who exterminated the first expedition fell upon the second with a like result. Munzinger, with the bulk of his troops, was slain by the lances of the Danakils, who say that " Guns are only useful to frighten cowards." ■ v;r;; -i^^, - j...... . y t 4 :;7! 1:;>^;5 4.s" ■ ' As the mountain streams are lost amongst the sands and lavas before reaching the sea, the Danakils are unable to cultivate their lands, except along the banks of the Awash, where are a few garden-plots ; insufficient, however, for the local wants. But through commerce the Danakils are enabled to procure sufficient supplies from the seaports and the markets of Shoa. It is the custom for every caravan en route to pay a tax on encamping, in return being entitled to the protection of the tribe, and thanks to its guides and safe conducts they pass in safety between the mountains and the sea. The Abyssinian sovereigns have often desired to close certain trade routes across the desert in order to open up others for their own advantage ; but their power is arrested at the boundary of the plains, where the Danakils indicate the route to be followed with the points of their lances. In the northern part of the desert the Taltal tribe, who, according to Riippell, g^reatly resemble the Abyssinians in features, are chiefly employed in working the salt in the bed of Lake Alalbed, which they sell to the Abyssinians of the plateaux in square bricks. The Taoras and Saortas, dwelling south of Adulis Bay in the Buri peninsula, are also Afars, modified by crossings with the Abyssinians, and speaking a Tigr4 dialect mixed with a large proportion of Arab words. According to Rohlfs the Taora and Saorta women are of extremely small stature in comparison with the men. The redanto or chiefs of the northerb Danakils are magicians, who hold communication with the spirit-world, tend are acquainted with the star presiding over the destinies of each individual. The rank of redanto is hereditary, providing that the son be without physical or moral blemish, for unless of sound body and mind he would be incapable of holding communion with the spirit/S. On the Red Sea coast a few Afar families live by fishing, and venture far seawards in boats tapering to a point at the prow and stem, and carrying large square sails com- posed of mats. These boats were formerly greatly feared by navigators of the Bed Sea. As bold on the sea as on the land, the Danakils often attacked and captured large merchant vessels ; but they have been compelled to abandon their piratical courses, since the steam gunboats arc able to chase them into the small creeks and maze of coral islands along the coast. The descendants of these corsairs now turn their attention to fishing, and are the only sailors in the Bed Sea who still pursue the dugong or lamentin. mm&m^ ttherhood of blood; ver their foreheads, d bracelets. About d Persian or Baluch IT as Aussa, but not lable than the coast sad of 350 Egyptians r Pasha endeavoured reduce this kingdom )e who exterminated liunzinger, with the (rho say that " Guns avas before reaching t along the banks of ■, for the local wants, fficient supplies from trery caravan en route 'otection of the tribe, etween the mountains x> close certain trade own advantage; but the Danakils indicate the northern part of jreatly resemble the alt in the bed of Lake 1 square bricks. The m peninsula, are also iking a Tigr^ dialect Bohlf s the Taora and ith the men. magicians, who hold Ith the star presiding hereditary, providing Nss of sound hod J and spirits. On the Red far seawards in boats rge square sails com- by navigators of the Is often attacked and elled to abandon their se them into the small descendants of these sailors in the Bed Sea ^ -^•:•> < •< a o '•)i trnvKimH'. I ,i .i .j , n ii iu iwp . ii ii,ini i . I m ' nn^ff ym y p i i | iiii i i i| i j II I i i ii 'Jiu W li' ii TOlU ^ffftm h r i -.-.vsiv X ''- L I ll l l i l Hi III! ' I I I Wtf li— MU i HA H m-PH •^5JSB»'' , .. I i T eke the G alias eh near which ed in the sense ts. They call 'Brave Men;" is synonymous of the Gallas, * original home 9unt Eenia are i;s to it as if to Eteenth century )m Africa, and has even con- ' [an Gallas, the and west the )rding to Barth !enia and other led Semites and itions with the their northern ies the Somalis. sn provisionally las, those living in the vicinity of the equator as well as the Or6mos of Abyssinia, speak languages so closely related that they can easily understand each other. The various dialects may be reduced to five, all bearing remote resemblance to the Semitic tongues, not in their vocabulary but in their phraseology, indicating a similar mental constitu- tion. D'Abbadie has called attention to a certain coincidence between a large number of roots and grammatical features in the Basque and Galla tongues. The Gallaa are said by Bleek to possess clicks like those of the Hottentots, but the statement has not been confirmed by other observers. Ignorant of writing, the Oromos have no books except the Bible, introduced by the missionaries, and which, with a few dictionaries and a grammar by Tuschek, constitute the entire Galla Fig. 62. —Routes of THB GhIBF ExPLORBIM IN SoUTU AbySSINIA. Suae 1 : 6,000.000. ,tl'* I u\ i^ ^ \) IC li ,^ ^ \ 5 ^V_f*^ ^nririlf j^^"**^ *^y V / \ ^^0 r > jtf*0^ m Wi \ ^S' ^ >*», \<^ \ ^^^'^^^^TN. ''T^M "JH*^-.^^ "^ 4S^ /.* ^\y\ (\\ ^ (f ^-""^^ /• 35* E, . of Greenwich 40* Boate* of Antoine d'AUndie. laoMilee. literature. The Ilm-Orma country is also occupied by peoples of different stock speaking another dialect as yet not reduced to writing by the missionaries. They are evidently the remains of conquered peoples forming isolated ethnological groups amid the invading hordes of the Galla nation. In the open Oromo countrj' still exist a few groups of Amharinians who have preserved the Abyssinian language. . The Gallas are usually of middle height, or about 5 feet 4 inches, although men are found amongst them as tall as the Scandinavians. They are broad-shouldered and slender- waisted, the young men having chests which would delight a sculptor; the legs are shapely, the feet small and always well arched. Strong, active, and ^mm^' 196 N0BTH.E.V8T AFRICA. slim, they resemble the Abyssinians, and more especially the Agau, to whom they are probably related ; but they are usually of a more attractive and open cast of countenance. The Gallas are extremely dolichocephalous, forehead high and rounded, tl?e nose flat, the lips full but rarely pouting, the beard thin and the hair wavy and growing in separate tufts. The finest men are said to bo found amongst the Limmus and Gudrus on the banks of the Aba'i, who, according to some authors, may be token as types of the race. Like the bulk of the natives of the Upper Fig. 63.— Qalla Gibl. ?- Nile, the " Sons of Men " are very skilful in dressing their hair in the shape of a orescent, a halo, or in long tresses ; but the right to these decorations is. limited in many tribes to those who have killed a man, under penalty of having it shaved off every three months. The skin varies greatly in shade ; whilst that of the men is of a deep or reddish brown, that of the women is usually very light. The latter are all considered, even by white people, to be very handsome in their youth. According to Beke, the complexion of the Gallas along the Abai or Blue Nile Valley is not darker thuu that of the Andalusian peasantry. It was due to their relatively fair THE OATJiAS. 107 to whom they open cast of u(l high and 1 and the hair bund amongst some authors, of the Upper I the shape of a ns is limited in ig it shaved off )f the men is of The latter are nth. According e Valley is not I* relatively fair colour that the Jesuits derived their usual name from the Greek word gala, that is to say, " milk." The men and women are gracefully attired in the Abyssinian toga, and the hero who hos distinguished himself by some famous exploit proudly ])luntH un ostrich plume in his hair. The Gallas are armed with a lance, the two- edged knife, and a shield of buffalo or rhinoceros hide. Their dwellings, which resemble those of the Abyssinians, are circles of rough stones conically roofed with g^ss or reeds. They are nearly all built under the shade of large trees, and the traveller traverses many villages which he scarcely perceives through the dense forest vegetation. The northern Ilm-Ormas, like their Abyssinian neighbours, are far more intel- ligent than those of the west, and acquire languages with remarkable facility. Like the civilised Abyssinians, they till the land and breed stock. They possess numerous varieties of cereals, good horses, the best mules to be found in Central Africa, and two varieties of oxen, the zebu and the sanka, with long horns which when sprouting are trained to grow in the shape of a lyre. In many districts all the villages are occupied with bee-farming. However, the Oallas have not all the peaceful virtues of the agriculturalist, and their warlike instinct is often aroused. The country is wasted by continual feuds, and in some tribes the able men have been reduced by more than two- thirds. Even in the family itself, end- less vendettas are carried on, unless blood-money has been accepted. But if the Gallas are with good reason feared by most of their neighbours, they are in their turn frequently threatened in the north by the Abyssinians of Gojam and Shoa, and to the east by the Somalis, whilst the slave-himters often make successful razzias into their forests. The children, especially, have reason to dread these marauders, because the adult Galla will often starve himself rather than submit to slavery, whereas if taken young they can soon be trained for a life of bondage. In nearly all the petty Galla states the trade in these children is carried on to the profit of the chiefs themselves, some of whom impose a direct " child-tax " on each family, whilst others accept human flesh in payment of imposts. Some Galla tribes are grouped into republican federations, but the bulk of them, engaged in interminable wars, have elected heyu or chiefs, who alone of aU the Gallas practise polygamy. Amongst the southern Ilm-Ormas, these chiefs are always chosen from some noble family, and are invested with power merely for a termof years. Most of the Ilm-Ormas were converted to Abyssinian Christianity before the invasion of Mohammed Graiiheh, or the " Left-handed," who overthrew the power of the ancient Ethiopian kings. From this period they have preserved the names of a few saints, the celebration of Sunday or " the Great Sabbath," and some other feasts of Christian origin. At present the increasing influence of the Abyssinian sovereigns has compelled several Galla tribes to re-embrace the monophysitio religion ; some of the natives also have accepted the tenets of the Protestant and < Catholic missionaries. The native priests, originally slaves purchased in their youth by the Capuchin friars from the parents or slave-dealers, and brought up in the French seminaries, do not appear to enjoy much influence with their fellow- it' ':* •*W«»»rW»">iflPP»»- iiij*i,i — ^ 198 NORTH-EAST Ai'EICA. countrymen. The Maliommedans have heen more fortunate, and whole populations have fervently embraced the faith of Islam. The bulk of the nation has, however, remained faithful to their nature-worship. Nevertheless the Gallas believe in Wak, Waka, or "Wakayo, a supreme god whom they confound with the sky, and pray to for rain during the dry season, and for victory over their enemies. They have also other inferior gods, to judge from their names evidently of foreign origin. Such are Saltan, the spirit of evil; Boventicha, the tutelar genius of the race ; Oglieh, the god of generation, to whom sacriBces are offered at the commencement of the rainy season; and Atetieh, the goddess of fertility, whose feast is celebrated at harvest time^ which falls at the end of the winter. Moreover, they worship all living things and all formidable objects of nature, such as the forests, rivers, woods, mountains, thunder, and the winds ; each family has its protecting tree, often an olive, which is named after the Virgin, St. Michael or some other saint, watered with the blood of sacrificial victims reared on honey and beer. Of animals the serpent, "the father of the world," is the most worshipped, and many a cabin has its domestic snake. The northern Gallas have priests and sorcerers; these latter, called kalisha, greatly dreaded on account of their incantations, pretend that they can dispose of the future at their will, causing life or death, and conjuring the evil spirit. But still more terrible are the buda, or were-wolves, who transform themselves into wild beasts and cause death by a mere glance. Every person proved to be a " buda " is immediately butchered, and, as in mediasval Europe, it is the old women who usually fall victims to these popular superstitions. In the case of persons merely " possessed," an incessant drumming and exorcising is kept up, so as to drive out the zar, or evil spirit, and thus effect a cure. Thieves are scented out by the medium of a magician, or biba-shidi, a high court functionary, who, according to Antiuori, aided by the terror his shrewdness inspires, rarely fails to discover the culprit. The Ilm-Ormas seldom practise polygamy, having only one wife, too often a mere slave (^barged with all the domestic duties, but considered unworthy to till the land, water the cattle, or milk the cows. The marriage forms are very numerous, and that of abduction is still honoured amongst certain tribes, the suitor's friends undertaking the seizure. He who manages to seize the young girl and carry her off in spite of her cries, becomes merely by this act her brother and protector ; he brings her to the lover's hut, a cow is quickly killed, and the young girl sprinkled with its blood, which she also drinks. The union is henceforth inviolable, because the Ilm-Ormas, unlike the Somalis, " a nation of traitors and perjurers," never break their pledg^ word. However this abduction is often a mere pretence, the parents themselves bringing the sacrificial cow to the lover's dwelling. Sometimes it is the young girl who takes the initiative. She runs away from the paternal mansion bearing in her hand a tuft of fresh grass, with which she crowns the head of her lover ; then kneeling down she strikes the ground to the right and to the left, as if to take possession of her chosen husband's residence. It even happens that the ugly or deformed girls, to whom no young man would be tempted to throw a necklet, the usual form of asking in marriage, are assisted by their parents at night THE DALLAS. 109 ole populations lature-worsbip. !me god whom eoson, and for to judge from spirit of evil; ation, to whom ad Atotieh, the )h falls at the all formidable mder, and the is named after d of sacrificial father of the c snake. The alisha, greatly dispose of the irit. But still slves into wild bea"buda" id women who persons merely as to drive out by the medium ig to Antinori, be culprit. 00 often a mere A> till the land, numerous, and uitor's friends and carry her protector; he ' girl sprinkled olable, because jurers," never pretence, the a;. Sometimes 1 the paternal owns the head md to the left, happens that tied to throw a irents at night to climb over the encloeure round the house of the man of their choice. She stops at his door till morning, and if ho does not succeed in driving her away by insults, she has conquered, and "as required by the laws of their ancootors," the young man is obliged to marry her, whether he desire it or not. When a Galla fulls seriously ill and there is no hope of saving his To, to prevent him suffering useless pnin, his friends stifle him by filling his mouth with clotted milk kept in place by a cloth. In some tribes the children and relations also k '\ their aged parents, even when not ill. The funeral ceremonies are regulated according to custom. A trophy of branches is placed on the tomb, indicating the wealth, position, and entire history of the deceased. The hair of women floating over the grave Fig. 64. — Population! of Sooth Abyhimu. S«Ial:6M(m>. laoMiiM. expresses grief and puts the evil spirits to flight. The elder brother inherits the wife and children ; but if the deceased had no issue, his brother or relations must adopt or purchase an heir, who takes the dead man's name, and thus carries on the family. Children are frequently adopted by the Gallas ; the wife gives the child suck, the husband gives it his thumb to bite, and the ties of relationship are henceforth inviolable. The Galla communities, tribes or fractions of tribes, which hoar a distinct name, differing according to their political surroundings and their upland or lowland place of habitation, may be reckoned by the hundred. Some of the clans have become Abyssinians by marriage and mode of life. Such are principally the Mechas of Gojam, the Jaggadas of Beghemeder, all nominally Christians; the WoUo M i ISidn r^W* fmrn mmmfg^ 200 NOUTII-EAST AiailOA. MohumincduiiH of the grout plutoiiu bvtw(Hp<>ndent or tributary Ilm-Ormus living to the wext of Shoa, towards the sources of tho Awash, and on the watorparting between the Abai and the Gugsa, us well as the Jillis, Sixldos, IIu(his, FinHuis, Muttas, Nonnos, Gudrus, Ilorros, Jummas, and other tribes oecupying tho region formerly known as ♦' Great Daraot." A largo tract of territory south and south-east of Shoa, towards Ilarrar, is inhabited "by the Ittus and Arnssis. Lastly, the Sidainas, ]>oopling Innarya (Dnarea), and Katfti, in tho Houth-westorn region of Abyssinia, are regarded as a branch of the Galla fa*nily. Amongst them Christianity had formerly the largest number of adherents and Abyssinian culture had made the greatest progress. Their colour is generally lighter than that of the other Ilm-Ormas, and the Arabs compare the complexion of the young Sidama girls to cinnamon. To tho north some of the Sidama speak Qonga, a tongue related to the Agau, and current amongst tho i )amot Abyssiuians north of tho Blue Nile. i . Topography. j The political centre of Shoa occupies the watershed on the two slopes of the Abyssinian range, eastwards towards the basin of tho Awash, and westwards towards that of the Blue Nile. In this country, where tho climate is temperate, and where the soil, better cultivated than in any other Abyssinian region, produces com and fruits in abundance, are grouped the civilised popidations of Abyssinian origin, and here stood the cities successively chosen as capitals of the kingdom of Shoa. The palaces being merely large huts, it is easy to shift the site of the capitals, and the residence of the sovereign has changed several times during this century, according to tho strategic advantages or the royal caprice. Licheh, the present capital, founded by King Menelik, and hence the greatest market in the country, stands on a terrace at the western base of the mountains culminating in Mount M^tatiteh, between two ravines forming the beds of two headstreams of the Jemma, an affluent of the Blue Nile. To the east on an isolated rock still nearer to the range, and in the vicinity of Wat, or the " Abyss," are the ruins of Tegulet, the " Town of Wolves," which became, after Aksum, the capital of Abyssinia, whilst its name was used for some time to designate the whole of Shoa. The fortress of Tegulet, which overawed the land, was taken by assault and destroyed in 1528 by Mohammed Grafiheh, the conqueror of Abyssinia. A few miles to the south, on another terrace, over which auriferous streams fall in imposing cascades, lies Debra^Berham, or " Mountain of Light," which was the royal residence till the beginning of the eighteenth century. To the south-west, in the same river basin of the Jemma, two small wooded heights, surrounded by formidable gorges, bear at an elevation of some 9,300 fcut the houses of Angolala, another abandoned capital, founded in 1830 by King Sehla Sellasieh. Lastly, there exists a fiftli capital, dala, and the yuH, Ejus, and huvo for the Hi indopondcnt HourccH <»f tho , U8 woU U8 thu Junimas, und ot." A lurgo hubitedijy tho , und Kaifti, in e GuUa fo-nily. adherents and r is generally ;he complexion Siduinit spouk ot Abyssinians slopes of the md westwards i is temperate, )gion, produces of Abyssinian ;he kingdom of he site of the aes during this 3e the greatest the mountains le beds of two t on on isolated ibyss," are the I, the capital of whole of Shoa. ^ and destroyed 9w miles to the losing cascades, isidenco till the e river basin of 'ges, bear at an idoned capital, i fiftn capital, rm mmmm mmmm ,'■'* r tj ,fc. mpNi ToroUilAI'IIY. ioi hiHtorically more fumouH than the othors, nua place where many Kurnpean exphtrorB have ri Ued Sea enruvanH. Ankolicr, tho V(>ry name of whieh phice recallM the faet that from the roniotcMt tinien diieH were here h'vied on foreign warcM, in alno the remrh'tice of the higher eer, a labyrinth of pathH wiiidiufj^ between the eity hutN, in delightfully mtiuited on the ridj^t-s of a nphinx-Hhaped mountain whieh projeetH ouHtwardN of the nuiin chain, (tr>inmanding a valley whence the waterH drain Nouth- wanls to the Awanh. CKmjc by to the north Ih the Ntatiou of Lvt-Mnrrfiit, whieh the Italian explorerH Cocchi, Chiarini, and AntoneUi choso for their ., tronomieal observations. Let-Marofia Hch at the bottom of un old crater, whence the lava-streamM were diHcharged to the Houth-wcHt. These lavas and adjacent terrace lands are encirclwl by an amphitheatre of hills, two of which, or rather two fragments of the Abyssinian i)lateau connected with the uplands by narrow ridges bordered with Fig. 66.— CHiBr TowNH or Eaw Uhoa* Boalol: eSO.OOO. 59'40 > 13 HUM. precipices, bear the two ambas of Emanhrei, or Ememret, and Fekereh-Qemb, which are regarded by the Abyssinians as impregnable. The latter fort contains in its terminal tower the treasures of King Mcnclik and the supplies for his array. To the north, in the valleys of the spurs, the villages of Aramba, Kokfara, Daweh, Majettieh, and several others follow in succession as far :\i: i:he country of the Eju Gallas. 7 >v, ' In the remote future, when the question of connecting southern Abyssinia with ther Red Sea coast shall be seriously thought ■:, three natural routes indicated by running waters cannot fail to be explore : to the north that which descends from the plateau of southern Lasta by the river Golima, and is lost in a depression flooded by brackish waters ; and far'her south, under the latitude of Magdala, that following the Melleh or Addifuah River valley as far as the confluence, and thence to the Awash and Lake Aussa, where it rejoins the caravan route towards Tajurah Bay. Another route, as yet unexplored by Europeans, descends from the Argobba . 1^ fl lit n 202 NOETH-EAST APEICA. towards the Awash by the market-towns of Daweh and Mejettieh. Abargues de Sosten claims to hare explored these two northern routes in their upper part, in spite of the vicinity of the dreaded Dawri tribes. Bianchi has recently attempted to explore another and more northern route, from Makaleh to the port of Assab, by way of the country of the Taltals ; but he was compelled to retrace his steps. The presence of ferocious peoples on the spurs prevent traders from visiting this part of the Abyssinian watershed, whilst the caravans coming from the Red Sea coast or Tajurah Bay are compelled to make a complete detour from the direct route to reach the provinces of Shoa. From Tajurah to the town of Ankober, the usual caravan route is about 360 miles, some 120 to 150 miles longer than the direct route towards the plateau. At present the most frequented route between Ankober and the shores of the Indian Ocean is that which passes through the principality of Harrar, terminating in the port of Zeila. From the Shoa uplands, it descends at first to the town of Aliu-Amba, inhabited, like the neighbouring village of Abderaaul, by merchants, slave-dealers, hotel-keepers and muleteers of all races, nearly all of whom, how- ever, are zealous Mussulmans. After pajring the custom-house duties, the caravans pass on to Farreh, or Farri, the last village of the province of Efat, built at a height of 5,560 feet on a projecting terrace ; then skirting the craters and lava-fields, they reach the Awash, which they cross to enter on the great plain of Mullii. Beyond this point the caravans proceed over the hills of a watershed, belonging to the country of the Ittus, thence redescending into the plain of Harrar. Some 24 miles west of this town is the little Lake Haramoya, near which the French explorer Lucereau was assassinated in 1881. Harkar and Zgi'lah. The town of Harrar, also called JSarrayheh by the Abyssinians, Ada or Adari by the Somalia, and Herrer by the Egyptians, is stated by travellers to be exactly midway between, or 170 miles from, Ankober and Zeila. Lying at an altitude of 5,600 feet, Harrar enjoys a relatively temperate climate, from 64' to 59° F., and is surrounded by fertile fields and groves of diversified vegetation. A delightful and well- watered oasis situated on the border of the arid regions, Harrar could support itself, even if it had no commercial relations with the neighbouring countries. But it is moreover an important market-town, and its two ports, Zeila and Berbera on the Somali coast, keep up a brisk trade with Egypt and Arabia. In 1883 it had an European settlement of five persons. Said to have been founded three centmues ago, it is the most populous city in the whole of Abyssinia, and even one of the largest on the continent, for from Cairo to Zanzibar, a distance of 2,400 miles, its only rival is Khartum. Accordingly the Egyptian Gh)vernment took possession of it in 1875, so as to protect this precious market from the attacks of the surrounding Somali and Galla tribes; but the garrison of from four thousand to five thousand soldiers, more dangerous than the nomads in the vicinity, has exhausted the country by oppression and plunder. The English, who as they "^»!i|l# WmuT' "(i i Mm I. Abargues de • upper part, in ently attempted lort of Aasab, by his steps. The isiting this part le Red Sea coast 3 direct route to kober, the usual than the direct he shores of the Tar, terminating it to the town of /, by merchants, . of whom, how- Aes, the caravans built at a height I and lava-fields, plain of Mullu. led, belonging to irrar. Some 24 lich the French ns, Ada or Adari lers to be exactly ' at an altitude of "■ to 69° F., and a. A delightful ns, Harrar could he neighbouring } two ports, Zeila rypt and Arabia, ave been founded >f Abyssinia, and ibar, a distance of itian Government ;; from the attacks 'om four thousand the vicinity, has ish, who as they HABBAE AND ZEILAH. 208 possess the seaboard, are the heirs to Egypt, have already taken the necessary steps to secure this prize, which Burton was the first Englishman to visit, in 1855. On withdrawing the Egyptian garrison they hoisted the British flag on the walls. The king of Shoa, who was also desirous to obtain this town, had not sufficient strength to struggle against such rivals. Harrar, whose shape may be compared to that of a pear, lies on a granite hill which gradually tapers to the west. To the south Mount Hakim commands the town from a height of some 660 feet, giving birth to many streams, which water the gardens of Harrar and become lost in the marshes before reaching the Wabi, a tributary of the Indian Ocean. The numerous grottoes of Hakim are inhabited by long-tuiled yellow monkeys, with thick manes. Contrasting with the scattered dwellings of other Abyssinian cities, the nine thousand five himdred terraced dwellings of Harrar, covering a space of only 120 acres, and built of calcareous rock full of vegetable fossils, are crowded together within a rampart of stones flanked by embattled towers. The houses have few openings on the narrow, winding, steep lanes, whilst the few irregular squares usually open on the mosques ; the largest public space, called the Meidan, occupies the simmut of the hill. The Harrari, nearly all merchants, are fanatic Mussulmans of the Shiah sect, like the Persians and several tribes of Southern Arabia. From these countries probably came the missionaries who converted the Somalis and Gallas to their faith, and whose des- cendants constitute the present population of the city. When the Harrari meet together to chew the leaves of the kat {celastrua edulis), which is as highly prized by them as by the natives of Yemen as a stimulant, they begin and end the evening with readings from the £oran and acts of thanksgiving, " because this holy plant enables us to prolong our vigils longer into the night, in order to worship tho Lord." The society of Harrar differs from the rest of the Mussulman world in the respect that is shown to women. Before the arrival of the Egyptians, the emir, alone of all the inhabitants of this country, had more than one wife, whilst divorces, so common in other Mohammedan countries, are here of rare occurrence. Besides, the women are unveiled, and sell the products of their gardens in the bazaar, the- men taking on themselves all the hard work; and this town is also distinguished by its love of letters. According to Mohammed Mukhtar, all the children read and write Arabic, although it is a foreign language differing greatly from their own, which is either of Galla origin, or according to Burton and Muller, of Semitic stock. But they write the letters vertically, instead of from right to left. They have a certain literature, and their writers do not restrict themselves to mere comments on the Koran. One of the local industries is bookbinding. Although essentially a commercial town, Harrar has scarcely any industries, excepting that of its highly prized potteries, and its manufactories of togas, the black robes and mantillas worn ■ by the women, and the red garments reserved for the young girls. Most of the other manufactured articles are imported from Arabia, and the chaplets worn by the Harrar people are made by immigrants from Hadramaut. Since the people have exchanged their independent state for the Egyptian rule, they have lost much of ■s;^i«r* ■.■ a <..|.>i,»Mfc<.tw> . p , i jit iii iMj B.' .viL » wiff 'r t i^!r ' '''' js * >* * wr ii jw »» ^^ * w 204 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. I their property, the population has diminished, and hysenaa prowl around the town- walls. CofEee- growing is the principal occupation of the region around Harrar and in the plains tilled by the Gallas ; the berry, which is of a superior quality, is exported from Hodeidah and Aden, under the name of " Mocha." Like the Yemen Arabs, the Ilarrari do not infuse the coffee, although they drink decoctions of bark and dried leaves. Tobacco, the opium poppy, bananas, oranges, and grapes are also produced on the plains of Harrar ; the potato has recently been introduced, and all the vegetables imported from Europe have thrived welL In ita forests -■.,,<. ;;. ;,,; Fig. 66. — Habbar. ,;4' c-,^-^ .'t^-' 'M ■;.- :.>.i ^• Beait 1 : 9,600. >>■". OU*. .■''.'i L . t« •' ■,'^. .•.o».-. ;.'i! t^ 9- K-'V IH X' 30- r^ ^f^ S-* ■^■•1 1^ it*' Sj? V-' \ J .V- i . )• ;-uV 9- ■ . . 18 'A- 10 ^.e- ^■'^• \ * 1 feet deep, and affords safe shelter to large craft. According to Rochet d'llericourt, it is not of sufficient size to accommodate more than eight or nine vessels of from three to four hundred tons. In the vicinity of the town lies a large saline plain, whence the Issa camel-drivers obtain the salt which they sell to the Harrari at a high price. Zei'la has no springs ; hence every morning a long string of camels is dispatched to seek the n*-- "ary water in the wadi of Tacosha, Three-fourths of the population consists oi J'-sa Gallas, and every evening the village resounds with Fig. 67.— Zbila. SoalP 1 r 400,000. otoie Depth*. tetoas Fe«t. 83 to 80 feet. 80 Feet and upwards. ■ ? urth describes Reefli. .SMiln. )B, lead from redescending om this point by a chain of I more rugged ountry of the ircbipelago of ;he Gadibursi [>le for ships, from 26 to 33 their warlike or other national songs. A small English garrison from Aden now occupies the town, so that there is some hope that the slave-trade may at last bo suppressed, of which Zeila has hitherto been one of the principal centres. Tajurah, Obok, Assab. The route between Shoa and Tajurah Bay does not enjoy, like that of Zc'ila, the advantage of a midway station such as the city of Harrar; still the principal town of the Anssa district, situated near the southern bank of a fresh- water lake, which receives the waters of the Awash, may be regarded as a veritable town. It is a IJ j' «!ii H ) iHm »' a* ' W i>w> M i — 'iii in i ] i! » n i M ni i"i ^ i i iw ■■'« ywwwwff i?m w 206 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. collection of more than a thousand huts where are settled the merchants and camel- drivers of the Moda'ito Danakil tribe, and was once the capital of the Mussulman kingdom of Adel. From Aussa to Tajurah Bay follow in succession several other groups of cabins also belonging to the Afar tribes, and the northern shore of the bay is bordered by widely scattered hamlets and villages. Amongst others is that of Sangalo, which served till recently as the port whence the Galla slaves were shipped to Arabia, and which was annexed to France in 1882 by the French explorer Fig. 38.— COUBSB op TRB LOWBB AWABH. Scia* 1 : 3.700,000. ■•■ m. , aOUUes. Solelliet. Still farther east the hamlet of Ambabo stands on a beach whence slaves have also been frequently shipped in spite of the French or Enf.ush cruisers which are stationed on the shores of the Indian Ocean. Beyond Ambabo stunds the town of Tqj'urah, which has given its name to the great bay reaching some 36 miles into the interior. Like Sangalo, this village has been ceded to France by the chief of the Ad-Ali tribe, but neither of ';hese hamjets were formally taken possession of till the year 1884. The beach of Tajurah is unfortunately almost level; the port is n i ^i |i i ii ^i>i i ^ ( iii TAJUEAH— OBOK— A8SAB. 207 its and camel- 6 Mussulman several other 1 shore of the hers is that of i were shipped )nch explorer whence slaves cruisers which ids the town of 36 miles into by the chief of . possession of el; the port is badly sheltered, and not of sufficient depth to admit vessels of small tonnage. The only part of the coast whore the French have at last founded a permanent station, after having ignored the deed of concession, which was signed in 1862, for over twenty years, is on the eastern peninsula of the Danakil country, between the Bay of Tajurah and the mouth of the Bed Sea. The hamlet of Ohok, in the immediate vicinity, has given its name to the whole of the annexed territory, and here in 1881 the first commercial house was opened by Amoux, a merchant who later on perished in a tribal feud. Obok offers great advantages as a port of call for steamers. Situated near the I fig- 69.— Tajukah Bat amd Lakb Assal. x Scale 1 : 900,00a . af Greenwich •42M0 otoieo Feet. Depth. 160to8S0 feet. 890 Feet nnd upwards. IS Miles. Strait of Bab-el-Mandeb, it commands the passage to much greater advantage than the town of Aden, and transports could here put in for coal without altering their course. Although this port cannot be compared to that of Aden, yet it possesses a good anchorage, which might be completely sheltered at small cost. It is separated from the high sea by coral reefs, in which are openings accessible to large ships ; the north and north-easterly winds, so feared by sailors, are deflected from the harbour by Rds-el-Bir, or " The Promontory of Wells," which projects into the sea north of Obok. The gradually widening valley, where the buildings of the growing village are beginning to replace the thickets of acacias and other trees, is commanded by a coraline cliff about 60 feet high, the ravines by which it is Mm 208 NORTH-EAST Ai'KICA. intersected servinj? as channels for the floods during the rare rainfalls. The upper terrace is itself separated from the plain of the Danakils by a second somewhat less elevated cliff. Although the station of Obok suifors greatly from drought, the district might be reclaimed, and travellers, comparing the vegetation of Obok with the naked and burning rocks of Aden, describe this new station as an oasis. On sinking wells in the valley water is everywhere found at a depth of from 3 to 5 feet, a little brackish near the shore, but perfectly sweet farther inland. King Mcnelik has granted a formal concession to a French explorer to build a narrow-gauge railway between Ankober and Obok. Many of the caravans coming Fig. 70.— Obok. Scale 1 : 64.000. BaaAa ezpoaed at low water. OtoSS Feet. rcpttiB. satoso I^eet. 80 to 160 Feci , S,2C0 Taidi. 100 Feet and upwards. from Shoa have already commenced trading with this settlement. The extent of the lands on the northern shore of Tajurah Bay that have been conceded to France is estimated at 1,200 square miles. The commercial rivalry existing between the Europ >an nations, which has made Zeila an English city, and which now creates the French town of Obok on this coraline African coast, also caused an Italian colony to spring up on the same seaboard in 1870. Southern Abyssinia, till recently almost cut o£E from the world, will thus possess for the exportation of its commodities three maritime ports belonging to as many different foreign powers. No serious attempts to utilise the town of AKsab were made till 1882. The new town, which already possesses several buildings in the European style, lies 72 miles directly north of Obok, and '^!^ tnfttllH. The by a second greatly from ho vegetation lew station as at a depth of urther inland, per to build a 'avons coming Feet and iwarda. The extent of in conceded to )ns, which has nm of Obok on ip on the same Tom the world, maritime ports ts to utilise the ready possesses 1 of Obok, and 1^ -:^*i;i^L, --:*>' '< \m\ mummmasm ^^^■■: TAJURAH— OBOK— A88AB. 36 milos from Bub-cl-Mundob, north of a long littorul indentation. NunicrouA isluts acatturcd ut tho entrance of the hurbour shut out the seu, exc«>])ting to the north-east, and are continued by reefs which the suud, mud, seaweed und coral are gradually causing to encruuch on the buy, so that these ishinds must sooner or later become u peninsula of the mainland. Tho well-protected port, situated on Fiff. 71.— Ah8ab. Boole 1 : SItW/WO. 4e°45' E . of Greenwich 42°55 Depths. ^ 0tfl»8 !,2to64 e4to<« 80 Feet Feci. Teet. Feet. andapwaida .6MUn. the beach of Bou'ia, about half a mile south of Assab, affords anchorage to the largest vessels within 600 feet of the coast. The territory of Assab is a shifting dune or hard rock nearly destitute of vegetation. Near the neighbouring village of Margahleh are a few pools of water fringed with verdure ; here and there the Afar huts are shaded by some clumps of palms, while along the intermittent streams the brushwood is matted together by a network of creeping plants. The 14 — AF. '"'' ' -.'..'., ■■. ' " '" ' ■'■' "■■ y v'"'":'--^''' ■'-'' / ' ' ■fWfll* iJ ' n .t i 21U NOUTU-EA8T AFRICA. town of AnHab, huving to f'btain pure wutor by distillation, and poHseming no arublo lunds or ngricultumi industries, cannot exiwct u grout comniorcial future ; its only product is suit, and oven this cunnot be worked in siifoty. JJut the few Italians in Assub, round whom are grouped some five hundred Arabs, Afars, and Somulis, aro making grout efforts to establish permanent relations between their station and the towns of 8hoa. Although at a grout distance from the rich CfU.iiries of the interior, b8, Afurs, uiul between thoir rom the rich mty-five duys' such as coffee, chi, and other guidance and unions, hoping ire a88a88inut«}d ade carried on from seven to ) port numbers r south, is the pearl, ostrich- The littoral the proteotioa >mmercial town [ear here stands on a trachytic istians. Pagans, [lese miraculous ■Haimanot, the of Combes and •thirds of whom a country. No )re crossing the , ©Ives from their " — ^which flows over the valley mds an ancient 1 of Menelik, at . Zena-Markos, surrounded by ra-Libanos. To 5 Takkazeh, are are divided into century, at the DKBIlA-LIBANOH—UOaKlI- 1)11,1)11, LA. til time of the invaHion of (irunhoh. liut on Hcttling down they adopted iiutny of the cuHtoms of the AtnhuriniunH, whom they hud (liHiM>HHeHN) !abena country, jal group, differ ;al Mussulmans, be continually lave-hunters for oduces the best I the two great en communities, mara Alps are [butanes of the 'oUow in succes- origin, concem- ictory accounts. 1 in crossing at . This formid- n narrow canoes ng westwards to Fabus, is covered 1 mainly in the the least known is situated on an imu, stands on a owns in Innarya or Ennurou, and uU the other southern Oullu stuhw, Jininia-Kaku, or " Kitigdcun of Abbu-Jifur," (Jem, Yunguro, Hiduinu, Kullo, Ghiiniru, and tlio gn-iit Htat(> of Kiillii, the largest country peoplwl by (iallas which rcMiogniww tlio nuz» niiiit\ ,,t Abys- ffinia. Like tho provinces of Abyssinia properly ho callinl, all these states are variously divided into degas, voKna-degas, and kwullas ; but on tho whole tho intermediary zone is tho most imiwrtunt, for in it are centred all the chief towns and market-places. In Jimraa and Guma the lands Iwlong mainly to tho zone of the upland plateaux, and barley is here chiefly cultivated ; the lowlands occupy a larger extent in Innarya, Limmu, and Kaffa. Innarya. The name of Innarya was formerly applied to a far more extensive region than that which has preserved this appellation. Like Abyssinia it was u Christian kingdom, and for centuries its Sidama inhabitants successfully resisted the sur- rounding Pagans and Mohammedans. But the Limmu-Gallus, occupying tho upper basin of the Orghesa, at last seized the country and, when they embraced Islam, forced their new religion upon the conquered Sidumas. The people of Innarya, now governed by a queen, are Mussulmans, although the name of Sidama, which has no longer any definite meaning, is still used as a general term for the Christians of the Abyssinian countries bounded north by the course of the Abui. Innarya, properly so called, no longer comprises more than the upper valley of the Gugsa, where this river still flows northwards. The lowlands and slopes of this valley are pre-eminently fitted for coffee culture, the shrubs being far finer than those of Kaffa, from which country tho plant has received its name. Coffee-plants are said to be found in Innarya some 8 to 10 feet in circumference. Coffee is monopolised by the king, and his slaves alone have the right to gather and sell it for him in the market of Saka. The gold-dust, which was formerly the chief wealth of Innarya, is no longer found in sufficient quantities for exportation. Although they have lost their ancient civilisation, the people of Innarya are still said to be the most civilised nation of southern Abyssinia, and to excel oven the Abyssinians as artisans. The market of Gondar can show nothing superior to their embroideries, or to their weapons with carved silver-mounted hilts. They manufacture iron instruments, which are exported even as far as the tribes occupying the basin of the Sobat. A fortified custom-house defends from the north the approaches to Limmu from Abyssinia. Many of these upland states are almost entirely enclosed by a belt of double walls, moats, and drawbridges ; moreover a large moor, on which no one has the right to settle, spreads round the country, protecting it like the moat of a stronghold. Each kingdom resembles a besieged fortress. As can be well understood, communications in this country are a matter of great difficulty. Whilst a pedestrian could traverse in four days the forty miles between the great market of Basso, in Gojam, and that of Saka in Innarya, the caravans have even taken two years to accomplish this journey. I :i :*> , ,;, ^ ■ ^^i,» ^ ^ . \i^„iifm^^i^^^ . ^ji. i ^^) j$0i^ii^'^t'ji)^ l ^'^ji^0 i ^y^^xv 214 NORTH-EAST AFBICA. Yangaro. Yangaro (Janjero, Zinjoro), south-east of Innarya and east of Gimma-Kaka, comprises a portion of the hilly slopes draining to the Gugsa. In no other country are the "rights" of the reigning house better safeguarded by legal guarantees. Excepting the king, his children, and the low-caste peoples who are too much despised to be feared, Beke was unanimously informed that all the males were partially mutilated, so as to incapacitate them for the throne. One of the king's thousand privileges is the use of certain medicines which are forbidden to his subjects. The people having no other animal food than beef, all suffer from tape-worm like the northern Abyssinians ; but the king destroys this parasite bv the use of a decoction of kusso, while the common people, not daring to touch the "king's medicine," have to content themselves with bitter herbs. Amongst ether strange stories told of this mysterious Yangaro country, the missionaries Isenberg, Krapf and Massaya, relate that human sacrifices are very common, a new-born child being frequently inunolated to their divinities. Immediately after their birth the males are said to have their breasts cut ofE, so that the future warriors may in no way resemble the " soft sex." When the slave merchants take captives of this country they never fail to throw the most beautiful into a lake, so as to render fate favour- able to their voyage; but they rarely succeed in capturipg males, who usually commit suicide rather than accept slavery. The name of Yangaro has often been ironically confounded with that of Zinjero, which signifies "monkeys" in Amhari- nian ; hence the reports often he^rd of a race of enslaved monkeys existing in Africa. Jimma-Kaka, or Kingdom of Abba-Jifar, is one of the regions which supply most slaves to the merchants or jibberti. According to Beke, nearly all the slaves brought from the northern and eastern Galla territories are made eunuchs' by dealers settled in the town of Folia. Kaffaland. The country of Kaffa is one of those whose people still claim to be Christians, although a long isolation has effected a marked change between their practices and these of the Abyssinians. There are said to be only six or eight churches in the country, centres of widely extended parishes and sanctuaries for the criminals and oppressed classes ; the kings are buried under' one of these sanctuaries. According to Massaya, the Kaffa Christians are ignorant even of the name of Jesus Christ, and worship the three saints, George, Michael, and Gabriel. Exceedingly scrupulous in the observance of their customs, which chiefly apply to the nature of their food, the people of Kaffa never eat com of any description, and to call them " gramini- vorous " is considered an insult. Their only vegetable food consists of the stalk of the ensete banana, which is cultivated around all their villages. The ordinary grains, such as wheat, barley, and haricots, are used merely as food for cattle and the brewing of beer. They are no less exclusive as to meat-eating, the ox being the only quadruped whose flesh they are aUowed tc eat. But the men, more KAFFALAND. 216 fortunate than those of Yangaro and other neighbouring states, are also allowed to eat poultry. According to custom, if the women eat this latter food they loose their libtrty and are immediately sold as slaves, the traiRc in human flesh not being for- bidden to the Christians oi KaSa, as it is to those of northern Abyssinia. Their clothing is also rigorously regulated, skins, tanned or untanned, being forbidden ; their garments are made of cotton tissues or coarse stuffs woven from the fibres of the ensete. Although Bonga, the capital of Kaffa, may be "the largest town exist- ing in Abyssinia," and an active market, money was hardly known there in the middle of this century. The only mediimis of exchange were glass beads and the salt imported from Sokota. To the south-west, in the Sheka or Siaka country, the natives collect gold-dust from the sands of the rivers. The sovereigns of !Kaffa maintain a ceremonious etiquette nearly as rigorous as ihat of the kings of Yan- garo. According to Soleillet, who has recently penetrated into this country, the ministers and grandees of the kingdom cannot speak to their master unless covered with fetters like slaves, although they are separated from the royal presence by a curtain. To shun recognition the king himself goes out shabbily clothed and mounted on a miserable horse ; but his escort is observed from afar, and everyone hides so as to escape the consequences of meeting him. In this coimtry of etiquette the formula of salutation is, "I hide myself under the earth." When the Christian priests still resided in the country, the faithful were boimd never to let them touch the ground between the mission-house and the church, so they were carried on the shoulders of strong men. It is related that these priests being unable to go to Gondar to receive consecration from the abuna, had brought to them by caravan a precious box which the " father " had filled with his sacred breath. South of Eaffa, on the watershed of the Indian Ocean, stretch the forests peopled by the mysterious Dokos, that is to say, in Galla, the " Ignorant," or the " Savages." According to Erapf , Isenberg, and most other explorers, the Dokos are dwarfs, like the Akkas of the "Welle Eiver, whilst D'Abbadie asserts they are in no way different from their neighbours, the Swaheli. * ■ . The King of Shoa, absolute in his kingdom, exercises only an indirect influence over the small tributary Galla states, and the southern kingdoms have been induced to accept the suzerainty of the " king of kings," less through his influence than that of the r&s of Gojam, who controls the trade routes leading from Gondar and Sokota to Kaffa. However, the material power of the King of Shoa over the sur- rounding countries has greatly increased during the last few years, thanks to the organisation of his army, which already comprises a body of permanent troops amounting to a thoujiand riflemen. In time of war, when the great nagarit, or war-drum, is beaten, this corps is followed by ci-owds of warriors and plunderers. According to Chiarini, the armed rabble occasionally amounts to nearly a hundred thousand persons. The tribute paid to the negus by the kings of Shoa and Gojam is very considerable. Besides a present of Muria-Theresa crown-pieces, the sovereign of Shoa is said to be obliged to supply his master with a hundred thousand oxen, two thousand horses, and two hundred leopard skins. 'ni i ^ '' ^"" 'i fj f ; '*! f'i*^V ' jj)t( j !iH' ' ft- CHAPTER VIII. UPPER NUBIA. HE whole of the northern and western watershed of Ahyssinia, with the exception of the basin watered by the Barka, is known by its hydrography to belong to the Nilotic system. The region watered by the Blue Nile and the Atbara, with their affluents, is geogra- phically sharply defined westwards by the Bahr-el-Abiad, or Great Nile, and eastwards by the advanced promontories of the Abyssinian plateau. To the south the water-parting between the Tumat, a tributary of the Blue Nile, and the Sobat, one of the main branches of the White Nile, is partly composed of mountains or high hills which have not yet been crossed by European, explorers. An unknown land, with an area equal to that of Belgium and Holland together, stretches beyond these limits, and here the frontiers are more e£Fectually guarded by its savage, warlike, or wandering peoples than by a line of fortresses and custom-houses. The zone of separation between TTpper and Lower Nubia is formed by the relatively small region which separates the Nile at its junction with the Atbara from the waters flowing to the Red Sea. With these boundaries the whole of the plains between the Nile and Abyssinia constitute the region of Nubia, usually designated under the name of Eastern Sudan, although the term of Beled-es-Sudan, or " Land of the Blacks," should be restricted to lands inhabited by Negroes. The total superficial area of this region may be approximately estimated at 224,000 square miles ; the population of the whole territory, extremely dense in the basins of the Tumat and Jabus, may perhaps number 3,000,000. - ; =wu _ ^ ,:;- ^1 ,: ^::,f^ i« Phtsicai- and Political Fkatubes. ■'i-m, Forming a distinct domain to which the general slope of the soil gives a certain geographical imity, eastern Sudan consieis of distinct basins verging slightly north- west-viirds along the Blue Nile and Atbara, and diverging northwards along the Mareb and Barka. It is cut up by isolated masses on the plains, by chains of hills and desert spaces, into natural provinces which the tril)e8 engaged in war have converted into so many petty states, whose frontiers are changed according to the fortune of war and the constant inroads of the nomad peoples. The more scanty :ji..i|i* 1.', ' ' ' 'i A ,1 PHYSICAL AND POLITICAL FEATURES. 217 .byssinia, with 1 known by its •egion watered its, is geogra- .biad, or Great 1 plateau. To Blue Nile, and ■f composed of lean. explorers, land together, tually guarded fortresses and )wer Nubia is it its junction lese boundaries the region of gh the term of mds inhabited approximately hole territory, srhaps number gives a certain slightly north- wards along the f chains of hills 3d in. war have iccording to the 'he more scanty the population, the more they break up into independent groups, never communi- cating with each other except through the medium of occasional traders. Never- theless native states, become powerful by agriculture and commerce, have sprung up in this region, gradually extending the sphere of their influence over the surrounding peoples. Thus was formerly founded, under the influence of the Egyptian civilisation, the kingdom of Mero^, which comprised not only " the island " bounded by the Astapus and Astaboras, but also the neighbouring countries. After the introduction of Mohammedanism the kingdom of Senaar was developed, which also exceeded the limits of its "island" or peninsula, between the White and Blue Niles. But the position of Upper Nubia between the plateaux Fig. 72.— BuuTBs OF THK Chief Explokers in Tak4 and Nbiohboukino Distuicta. Soale 1 : 8,000,63. HI. Hansol, 1861. Bk, Bokpr, 1861. St. Stendner, ISei-ai E. Brnst de Cobourg, 1862. I,, liejeaa, 1864. K. Krookow, 1866. 8. Sohweinfortii, 1865-68. Ha. HBl(!vy, 1888. _ 120 Hilos. Bp. Beil, 1868. H. Bokeby, 1870-71. P. Front, 1872. H. Hildebrandt, 1872 J. Junker, 1876. Mi. Mittchell, 1877. Mil. MuUer, 1880. of Abyssinia and the banks of the Nile belonging to Egypt makes it a natural battlefield for the sovereigns of these two countries. For more than half a century the Egyptians have occupied the intermediary zone, and in spite of their disastrous conflicts with the Abyssinians, they appeared to have definitely conquered the Sudan. But a formidable revolt, brought on by their exactions, has left them only a few places in the country recently annexed to their vast domains, and they have now been supplanted by the English on the coast. By the construction of routes and railways the whole country will doubtless soon be restored to civilisation. In virtue of the oflSicial proclamations addressed to all the inhabitants of the country by the late General Gordon " in the name of the most high Khedive and the all- M i ^ -■,: . (■dUA.-, I / !' 1 1 * ^ 1' "' .tt^^ '^ iij.y 4^ 218 NOETH-EAST AFllICA. powerful Britannia, Sudan is henceforth to enjoy full independence, and regulate its own affairs, without the undue interference of any foreign Government." At present t. ? Mussulman states in this region of Sudan are entirely destitute of strategical routes, ulthough at first sight the country seems to be completely open to the Abyssinians occupying the plateaux. They could easily descend by their riverain valleys, but as they cannot long breathe a mephitic atmosphere, the climate of the lowlands is a far more formidable enemy to them than the natives ; such conquests as they do effect are transitory, and by the very force of circimistances are again soon lost. On the other hand, if they are prevented by nature itself from seizing these lowlands, they would still be a great obstacle to invaders of Upper Nubia wishing to penetrate along the route over the fertile slopes to Massawah and the countries of the Mensas and Bogos. The Egyptians learnt to their cost the dangers of venturing on this route, exposed, as they were, to the attacks on their flanks from the Abyssinian warriors. Farther north, from Suakin to the Nile, the water in the wells is barely sufficient for the nomad tribes, and owing to this cause the operations of the British troops in this region were greatly impeded during the campaigns of 1884 and 1885. Ponding the opening of the railway from Suakin to Berber begun in 1885, the plains of the Blue Nile and Atbara can be reached only by the three traditional northern routes — that which follows the Nile from cataract to cataract ; and those avoiding the great curves of the Nile by running across the desert of Bayuda, between Debbeh and Khartum on the west; and through the Nubian wilderness between Korosko and Abu-Hamed on the east. These three routes were closed to the Egyptians by the late Mussulman insurrec- tion, and re-opened by the English under General Wolseley in 1884-5. Thk GiMu, Berta, and Lega Mountains. Beyond the Abyssinian plateaux the East Sudanese provmces have also their ip'.Iated mountain masses, forming veritable archipelagos in the midst of the plain. Many of these lofty hills which are delineated on the maps as forming part of the orographic system of Abyssinia, are, in reality, separated from it by plains. Such are the Giunu Mo stains, commanding to the east the valley in which the Abai, or Blue Nile, in its upper course completes its semicircular bend before reaching the plain. A few escarpments close to the river form, together with the projecting promontories of the opposite watershed, the last gorge of the Abyssinian Nile. Farther up the river, and near its confluence with the Jabus, stands an isolated i-ock, the Abu-Daiiab of the Arabs, the Tulu-Soghida of the Gallas, which is the "Mountain of Salt," whose abundant resources have not yet been analysed by Europeans. Beyond this point to the south-west the Tumat and Jabus, two large affluents of the Blue Nile, skirt the eastern base of other mountains or of an ancitat plateau, which running waters have completely furrowed in overy direction. These are the Berta Mountains, famous for their gold v/ashings, which determined the Egyptian invasion. ■r*jT?nii&B^*BiitiVffiy5W!B8tT ^ "^ THE GUMU, BEETA, AND LEGA MOUNTAINS. 219 and regulate lent." •ely destitute ipletely open end by their ), the climate atives ; such ircumstanceB re itself from jrs of Upper [assawah and lieir cost the icks on their to the Nile, )wing to this peded during from Suakin m be reached le Nile from e by running le west; and on the east, nan insurreo- >. ve also their of the plain. 5 part of the lains. Such the Abai, or reaching the le projecting ssinian Nile. an isolated which is the analysed by us, two large of an ancitat jtion. Th^ise termined the The Berta Mountains, followed by those of the Lega, whose highest tulu or summits exceed 10,000 feet, although their mean height is said to be scarcely 6,000 feet, stretch southwards towards the sources of the Sobat affluents, rejoining the KaSa plateau by intermediary ranges which have not yet been explored by European travellers. But to the north the heights gradually lessen ; the inter- mediary plains broaden out and unite, and the ranges are merely indicated by isolated rocks cropping out above the lowlands in continually decreasing numbers. West of the Fazogl country one of these isolated heights, the lofty Jebol-Tabi, partly covered with forests, attains a height of over 4,330 feet. Still farther on the red granite cone of Jebel-Guleh, that is to say, " Mount of Woods," or " Mount of Ghouls," according to Manjo, which the Funj designate as the cradle of their race, attains a height of 2,820 feet. Still more to the west is a chain of rocks in the midst of the steppes which border the right bonk of the White Nile. The highest is that of Defafang, .which was till recently an ethnical limit between the coimtry of the Denka Negroes and that of the Abu-Rof Arabs. The two riverain zones of the White and Blue Nile, on each side of the Mesopotamia of Senaar, are extremely fertile, thanks to the rainfall and the alluvia brought down by these rivers. But the intermediary region, which forms the base of the scattered rocks, presents in many places the appearance of a steppe. The land is covered with tall grasses, from the midst of which spring mimosas with their slight and delicate foliage. The populations, sedentary on the river bank, are nearly all nomad in the grassy plains surrounding the moimtains of the peninsula. East of the lower valley of the Blue Nile the plains are analogous in character. Wooded and fertile along the river banks, they become bleak and barren away from the watercourses. In the level region of Gedaref, between the Rahad and the Atbara, trees are rarely seen. The most remarkable of the isolated masses scattered amongst the steppes east of the Blue Nile is that of Abu-Ramleh, or " Father of the Sands," scarcely 1,660 feet high, but flanked by superb towcs piled up in enormous masMoii. From the ir^terstices of these rocks spring baobabs, their branches waviag over the abysw, whilst here and there some hut, to which distance gives the appearance of a bee-Inve, ucRtlet:' between the cliffs at the base of the gigant', tower. In the northern t^teppe, Jebel-Arang, the most advanced mountain, which attains an absolute height of but 2,000 icet not far from the right bank of the lower Rahad, is mainly covered by forests containing baobabs, which here reach their northern limit. On the eastern side the Jebel-Arang is followed by the Jebel- Abash ; then to the south the plain i^ studded with other heights, solitary or grouped, some of granite but neaily all of vo'canic origin ; some are even topped by basalt columns affecting the divers forms of peristyles, pyres, or diverging facets. These heights in the midst of the steppes receive considerably more rain than the plains, and the water running rapidly over the slopes is absorbed by the sand and gravel surrounding the rocky escarpment. In order to obtain water during the dry season, the natives pierce the earth at the mouth of the ravines, and the pools thus formed, usually surrounded by trees, are named kharif from the rainy season which filli thorn. In the dried-up river beds the crocodiles ■| •^— '— ■ t~ -■"■ '}^t.'m.^f9»ah'f'-' ""{'■ih.jJW'RI*''" 220 NOBTH-EAST AFRICA. and certain species of fisli, notably the siluroid iinodontm, lie torpid till reanimated by the returning waters of the rainy season. The water-parting between the Nile basin and the slope of the Red Sea consists of irregular cliffs of various heights, but none lower than 3,30l) feet. Primitive rocks and volcanic formations alternate in this mountainous region, which in many places presents the appearance of a plateau scored with ravines. At the mouth of the valleys sloping from the Abyssinian uplands, notably on the northern declivity of the Nakfa Mountains, are seen piles of debris, which Heuglin felt inclined to regard as the moraines of ancient glaciers, similar to those foimd by Fraas in the peninsula of Sinai. The granite rooks on both sides of the Red Sea, their slopes completely barren of vegetation and glittering with the many colours of their crystalline strata, resemble each other by their bold outlines and brilliant colours. One of the finest on the western side is the isolated Mount Shaba, rising above the marshy depression in which the waters of the Barka run dry. The vast peninsula of alluvial lands which at this point projects into the Red Sea basin shows that the river was foi 'iicrly much more abundant than it is now. Climate, Flora, Fauna. I'tir tl-mat!: >{ Fpper Nubia occupies a middle position between the humid zone of fae (Xjaatoriai lands and that of the slight rainfall where the Nubian desert begi S,;ni .•:iC c is no part of the country which does not possess a rainy season, more or lesti ..ia nJaut. At Khartum, situated about che middle of Upper Nubia, the kharif occasionally commences in May, more frequently in June or July, terminating in September. Rain is brought down by the easterly or south-easterly winds — that is to say, the southern trade winds of the Indian Ocean ; but after the rains the dry north winds return, lasting till March, the period of the equinox. During this season the temperature occasionally falls to 50° F., and at this time of the ye ^ the mornings and evenings are so cold as to require warm clothing ; the daily oscillations of temperature average 60° F. During the kharif it is dangerous to remain on the frequently flooded river banks on account of the prevalent marsh fevers, and numerous tribes then withdraw to the uplan* i regions of the interior. The black and the white il's, very common in the valley of tlio Blue Nile during the season, also disappear belbre the rains, " for fear of the malaria," as the natives Upper Nubia is raturally divided inf -^ an apiiicultural and a grazing country, according to the abundance of the rains an .1 running wa<^^f rs, the nawure and eleva- tion of the land. In the Fazogl count -y and on the bu.v^s of the Upper Jabus the arborescent vegetation is almost as leaiy as in tiic verdant volleys surrounding the great lakes. Beyond the forest zone, which encircles the Abyssinian plateaux throughout mosi, of their extent and which is continued along the river bunks, the mouths of the valleys and the hills are pre-eminently adapted for agriculture. Thanks to their fertile alluvia and splendid climate, these lands may one day become one of the richest cotton and tobacco producing countries in the world. The steppe, [ reanimated Sea consists imitive rooks jh in many ,he mouth of m declivity inclined to Froas in the their slopes iirs of their iant colours, ig above the ist peninsula ows that the humid zone ubian desert rainy season, Fpper Nubia, :ne or July, juth-easterly but after the the equinox. this time of lothing; the is dangerous valent marsh the interior. Nile during 8 the natives ing country, [•c and eleva- Upper Jabus surrounding lian plateaux river bunks, ■ agriculture. B day become The steppe, § % m o 0. ,1 I :l«*;l r^^ ^^ y vi-y -. M ii |. I JWfiJtjMm i Lt-AW'^/iu i .i P ^ ' MpjJ i ji/i' iii LiI ill.Jiy 4::*fm^i. W CLIMATE— FLORA— FAUNA. 991 or hhalah, in which the waters are lost, could hardly be utilised except as a pusture- land. But there are many extensive tracts covered with baobabH, dura palms, tamarinds, and mimosas, whence a gum is obtained known as talc, far inferior to the gums of Kordofan. In Senaar, as in Kordofan and For, on the borders of the regions where water is scarce, the hollow baobab trunks, some of which are 86 feet in circumference, are frequently utilised as natural cistenis. They are filled with water during the rainy season, some of the trunks containing a reserve of some 2,800 to 3,000 cubic feet of water ; the natives climb up and draw off the precious liquid from the tree by means of waterskins. In the northern part of Sudan some of the plains are veritable deserts, the sandhills undulating all around, wearing away the base of the njcks. On the route from Berber to Suakin, Abu-Odfa, an isolated granite block, has thus been eaten away all round its base, and sooner or later the heavy rock will snap its slender pedestal and fall on the sand. All the cliffs and rocky slopes of this desert region of Upper Nubia are miiformly covered with a kind of blackish varnish, whose origin is unknown. These gloomy walls impart an aspect to the landscape more forbidding and solemn than that of other regions whose mountains are higher and escarpments more abrupt. The forests of the advanced chains, as well as the tall grass of the prairies, in certain spots rising to from 13 to 16 feet after the rainy season, are inhabited by monkeys, lions, leopards, buffaloes, giraffes, rhinoceroses, and elephants. Mostly nomads, the huge pachyderms from one season to another roam over regions of many hundreds of miles in extent. Like the Somali Gadibursi on the other side of the Abyssinian Mountains, the hunters of the Hamran tribes, in Taka, attack these enormous animals in the boldest manner. Mounted on swift horses they fly before the elephant ; then, suddenly wheeling round, they spring to the ground behind the animal and hamstring it. The huge beast falls on the ground, and the hunter awaits an opportunity to give the second and usually mortal blow. Since 1859, Taka and the conterminous provinces have been regularly visited by hunters, mainly Italians and Germans, not only for the sake of the ivory, consisting usually of tusks much smaller than those of the Central African elephants, but also to capture wild animals for the European menageries. One of these hunters recently brought to the port of Hamburg thirty-three giraffes, ten elephants, eight rhinoceroses, four lions, and several other animals of less value. At the time of the long siege which the Egyptian garrison had to sustain in Kassala, during the years 1884-86, their provisions were drawn largely ivom parks of wild animals. The Bejas and Abyssinians also hunt the large animals on the borderlands of their respective territories, but when they meet they turn from the pursuit of the quarry and attack each other as hereditary enemies. The poisonous doboan, or surrfita fly, swarms in the valley of the Mareb. Its bite, although it does not affect the wild fauna, kills camels, donkeys, oxen, and other domestic animals in a few weeks. Hunting is therefore a dangerous pursuit in these infested regions, where the men have to penetrate on foot into the gorges or high grass. The origin of this fly is unknown ; it may be either the Central African taitsi or the tzatzaHa, which Bruce 51 iLI^: '222 NOIITII-EAST AFRICA. speaks of ns " the most dreaded of all animals," or it may be that insect whifh the ancients declurcd could put the lion to flifj;ht. East of the Uluo Nile, in t'lo Ku'fi country, another species of fly, smaller than the doboan, is fatal only to the uss, horse, dog, and camel. But the cause of the mortality of these animals may pos- sibly b(! due, not so much to the sting of one single insect, as to the thousands of wounds inflicted daily by the swarms of gadflies which absolutely worry the animals to death. The live stock can be protected only by keeping them in the stables during the day, and letting them out at night, or else by burning pungent herbs. However, there are spots where these pests cannot enter, consequently the air joid- tural populations have there collected into compact groups, such as the .Ala- llamleh uplands south-east of Eosert^s, which is a region of this description. Inhahitants. — The Shanoallah and Lkoas. The contrast between the Abyssinian mountains and the hilly plains sloping towards the Nile consists not only in the relief, climate and agricultural produce, but also in the populations. The tribes, dialects, manners, and religions, all differ, and are bounded by an irregular zone, which encircles the side of the mountains. In many places, those regions are separated by tracts either deserted, or else peopled by savage tribes, always on the watch for prey. All these communities are known by the collective name of Shangallas, which, however, is of no definite ethnological value, as all the non-Arab or non- Abyssinian blacks are indifferently called Shan- gallas by the people of the plateaux. The Upper Jabus Valley and the moimtains commanded by the double peak of Tulu-Wallel (10,666 feet), whose southern face overlooks the Sobat basin, are peopled by the Logas, the most westerly of all the Galla peoples, unless the Latukas and "Wa-Humas may also be considered as belonging to the same race, from which they are now rieparated by so many different nations. The type of the Legas is very pure and quite distinct from that of tue Negroes, although they are surrounded by the latter on the south, west, and north. Their complexion is very light, even more 80 than that of Europeans bronzed by the tropical sun. Tall and usually thin, they have the " nrms and legs of Yankees," a long and thin neck, narrow hollow-cheeked face, but with strong features and expressive eyes, a small head, and a high, narrow, and conic forehead. The women are in proportion much shorter than the men, and also present a much greater contrast than is usually remarked between the sexes, being as plump as the latter are tliin and scraggy, whilst their hands and feet are extremely small. The royal family, and those of the Lega chiefs, are of far less pure extraction than the bulk of the nation. They have received a strain of Negro blood ; but although the complexion is darker, the features are usually finer, and the body more fleshy. These mulattos are also of a livelier disposition, and have not the melancholy appearance of the other Legas, who are usually seen leaning on their lances with the head resting pensively on the right shoulder ; from this circumstance Schuver compared them to cranes. The Legas are one of the most numerous nations of the plateaux, comprising at least a hundred thousand INHAIUTANTH— TIIK SHANdALLAS AND I,F,(JAH. t whifh the 11 t'.ic Ku'a r to the u«8, U may po»- ihouHuiids of tho unimuU the stables igent herbs, the ap- ioul- s tho -Ala- )tion. lains sloping iral produce, ns, all differ, e mountains. • else peopled )s are known ! ethnological called Shan- Duble peak of 1, are peopled Latukas and n which they legas is very urrounded by ht, even more Uy thin, they )llow-cheeked high, narrow, ban the men, between the eir hands and chiefs, are of leived a strain es are usually 3r disposition, e usually seen loulder; from xre one of the Ired thousand yjorsons. Although their king can put twenty thousand warriors on tho biil tlotiold, without counting tln> Negro troopH of his vaHsalM, ho never abusps Ium pow> SM NOIITII-KAHT AFRICA. Eoaloufl M())iiininif> > tho Logufl livu u few thoUHuiid DeiikiiH, who huvu mmght protection uniongNt ti'im and work as their HlavoH. Iliiving no other iiiounii of eiicuping tho Hluve-doult.d in tho wiiHtod plainH of tlie Sobat and Zul, which thoy formerly inhabited, they have b' jj'W ' "V"fWJ?'" ' *'.'.'i/'Myii » ! ' 226 NOETH-EAST AFBICA. the form and size of umbrellas. In their eyes this emblem is the proof of the degree of civilisation that they have attained. The Eadalos, whose villages are built on impregnable rocks, ornamented with tufts of foliage in honour of the genius of the winds, boast that they are the true aborigines. Ai ording to Schuver, they resemble Iv.- Fig. 74. — Inhabitants op thb Blue Nilb. Soale 1 : 4,800,000. fc .laoMilBB. *■ *■ ■■■,- ■ the Negroes of the White Nile much more than the Gumus and Bertas ; they have large eyes, which distinguishes them more especially from the Gumus, whose eyes are small, "like those of pigs." •< The Sienetjos, who pass for the remnant of a people formerly in possession of the country, and were almost entirely exterminated by the Negroes, are probably akin to other Sienetjos who live farther east amongpst the populations of Damot and Gojam. The Sienetjos are not blacks, having a yellow skin, perceptibly clearer than that of Europeans who are exposed to climatic influences. The face is nearly ^ THE FUNJ RACE. 227 the degree e built on aius of the y resemble lA- is; they have 18, whose eyes possession of are probably of Damot and jptibly clearer I face is nearly square, the forehead very broad, and the skull regular. Very careful of the purity of their race, they never allow their daughters to intermarry with the Arabs or Negroes. Having good reasons to fear strangers, they live on inaccessible rocks, natural fortresses which the women scale daily, so as to provision the village ; but the path is carefully forbidden to people of other tribes. The Sierietjos are the only weavers and smiths of the country, and it is due to this fact that they have hitherto managed to preserve their existence in the midst of so many enemies. They are also skilful jewellers, making extremely elegant copper ornaments, which they do not sell. These trinkets are reserved by them for their own women, who are very fond of finery, and who wear several rows of glass bead necklaces round their necks. East of the Gumus, the plains covered with low hills which stretch towards the offshoots of Damot and Agaumeder, are beginning to be peopled by Agau immigrants, who, arriving in the country in isolated families, settle down in the clearings, at a few miles distance from each other. They do not fear the hostility of the natives, as they know they are protected by the prestige of the great military Empire of Abyssinia, by which any wrong done to them would soon be revenged by a war of extermination. Thus, the boundaries of Abyssinia are being yearly enlarged by the immigration of new colonies; from an independent nation, the Qiimus have almost changed into a tributary people. The Ginjar, who occupy the region of the Abyssinian spurs farther north as far as the frontiers of Galabat, have to pay tribute, often even in slaves. They are blacks mixed with Arabs and Bejas, probably refugees in their territory. They call themselves Mohammedans, and speak a corrupt form of Arabic. All their pride is centered in their hair, which is plaited like that of the Abyssinians, and greased with butter. • "'^^ ■'-■'■'■■ ^ ■■^"'^-- The FuNJ Race. '-"'' The mountains of the region between the two Niles are peopled by more or less mixed branches of the ancient Funj, or Fung, nation, which formerly ruled over all the country of Senaar. The Funj nearly all laid aside their national language on their conversion to Islam ; still some tribes have special dialects, greatly intermixed with Arabic words, and said to be connected with the group of Nuba languages. Mohammedanism has not yet completely supplanted the ancient religion. On the Jebel-Guleh, which the Funj consider as their sacred mountain, the explorer Pruyssenaere has seen them still celebrate phallic rites around a clay altar on which stands a wooden statue representing a god. According to Beltrame, their conversion to Islam is so very superficial that the majority of them have not even been circumcised. Hartmann, taking up the hypothesis of Bruce, believes that the Funj are allied to the Shilluks, and that all the region comprised between their territory and that of the Bertas is peopled by tribes of the same stock. The Hammej, who are now greatly mixed with the Arabs ; the Burun, who are still cannibals, according to Marno ; and the haughty Ingassana, who occupy the valleys of Mount Tabi, and have valiantly repulsed the assaults of the " Turks," are all I S88 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. i.' said to belong to the Funj race. This very name, equivalent in meaning to "citizen," would indicate that the Funj considrr themselves as civilised in a super- lative degree, in comparison with their still barlAiroua kindred. However this may be, the Funj were till recently one of the most powerful African peoples. At the commencement of the sixteenth century they destroyed the kingdom of Aloa, whose centre stood near the confluence of the two Niles, and founded another State, that of Senaar, which existed till the beginning of this century, exercising control over all the neighbouring peoples of Sudan, Nubia, and even Kordofan, and holding in check the Abyssinian armies which occasionally attempted to descend from their plateaux. But the Arab viziers by degrees obtained the power, leaving an empty show of authority to the Funj sovereigns ; rivalries and revolutions disorganised the State, and when the troops of Mohammed Ali penetrated into Senaar in 1821, they had an easy triumph, thanks to their discipline and superior weapons. The conquest was not to the advantage of the Funj, who soon became subjected to methodical slave-hunts, fusillades, the punishment of impaling, and other "benefits" of civilisation introduced by the Egyptians. At present the Funj, specially classed under this name, are not numerous, and even round Mount Guleh very few are met with who can be considered as typical representatives of the race; the numerous crossings caused by war and slavery have so corrupted the population that it is a matter of great difficulty to trace the predominating elements. Every Arab or semi- Arab tribe, especially the Baggftra immigrants and the industrious Barbarins, come to seek a fortune in this country, and the Zordofan Nubas settled in military colonies around the towns, have all contributed to modify the Senaar populations. The Egyptians alone, whether Mussulman soldiers or Coptic scribes, have had but little influence on the race, nearly all hoving quickly succumbed to the climate. The variety of their origin and physical appearance is so great that the inhabitants of Senanr are usually classed according to their colour as " white, red, yellow, blue, green, and black." Nevertheless the fundamental ethnical element appears to be that of the Fimj. According to most authors they form an intermediate type between those of the Nubians, Negroes, and Gallas. The head is long, the face orthognathous, the features regular, the cheek-bones slightly prominent, the body slim and graceful, and like most other natives they spend much time in arranging their hair. They are affable, cheerful, and hospitable, and all the Senaar Egyptians prefer to dwell in Jebel-Guleh, in the Funj country, than in any other district. Infirm persons are almost unknown amongst the Funj, and their women retain their beauty and bodily elegance far beyond the period usually allotted to the women of other African tribes. The delka, which consists of rubbing the body, fumigating it with perfumes, and anointing it with grease, is a practice much in use amongst the Funj and the other civilised inhabitants of Upper Nubia. The people of Senaar are skilful surgeons, and many of them travel to the basin of the Nile in the exercise of their talents. They are known even in Egypt, and the fellahin give the name of Senaari to the persons who vaccinate, treat fractured limbs, or operate on those Biiffering from ophthalmic complaints. THE TAKRUm— THE KUNAMA AND BABEA. 220 neaning to in a super- er this may es. At the Aloa, whose r State, that control over 1 holding in from their ag an empty disorganised laar in 1821, tapons. The subjected to er" benefits" araerous, and red as typical • and slavery y to trace the - the Baggllra this country, iwns, have all lone, whether ) on the race, of their origin XT are usually n, and black." ; of the Funj. n those of the ognathous, the i and graceful, lir hair. They prefer to dwell rm persons are 3ir beauty and omen of other ligating it with ongst the Funj I of Senaar are t in the exercise I give the name tperate on those The Takruri. To the north and north-west of the Ginjar, the zone of the spurs which separate the Abyssinian plateaux from the Nubian steppes is occupied by other immigrants, collectively known as Takruri, or Takarir, originally come from Dar- For, Wadai, and the countries of Western Africa. Mostly pilgrims returned from Mecca, they have preferred to stop and settle down in a country where they found lands to cultivate and a relative independence, rather than return to their own territory, where they were certain to meet with oppression. Perfectly accli- matised to these lowlands, where most of the Abyssinians and European travellers succumb, they now occupy all Gal&bat and many of the valleys of the Kwarra, in Abyssinia. Having become free, they have, at the same time, acquired great prosperity as farmers and merchants; but they have not always peacefully enjoyed their conquests, and civil war often broke out between the Takrur of Wadai, those of Dar-Fdr, and th6 descendants of the immigrants long settled in the country. A large number of Jiberti Mussulmans, expelled from Abyssinia because they have refused to abjure their faith, have recently increased the population of the Takarir oommunitiee and of the Dabaina Arabs. The Kunama and Barea.' . :v ■■.•/• The Eunama, Bazen, or Baza, who people the valleys of the Mareb and Takkazeh and the intermediary plateaux at the mouth of the Abyssinian kwallas to the number of some one hundred and fifty thousand, are " Shangallas," who have successfully kept aloof from intermingling with the Arabs. They do not as yet speak the language of the northern invaders, and, except in the vicinity of the borderlands, have not adopted the Mohammedan religion ; but if they have suc- ceeded in maintaining their national independence, it is only due to their continual and pitiless wars. An implacable struggle exists between them and the nomads of the north, and the frontier populations are always on the alert to avoid surprise, and the massacre which would inevitably follow. The Eunama have also to defend themselves on the south from the attacks of the Abyssinian highlanders. Like their neighbours, the Barea, ten .times less numerous, who live to the north-west in the rocky region of the water-parting between the Mareb and the Barka, they are continually in danger of being crushed by the enemies who harass them on both sides. In one direction the Arabs assail them from the lowlands, on the other the Abyssinians swoop down from their plateaux, whence Munzinger compares them to the com, ground between two millstones. Nevertheless, these populations so threatened are amongst the most interesting by their customs, the most sympathetic by their qualities, and the most worthy of imitation ; peace exists between their different communities, and labour is respected by them. Although resembling each other in their political and social institutions, the Eunama and the Barea are different in origin and physical type. The Eunama, established in the country since time immemorial, claim to be immigrants of Aby»* f -"— y 280 NORTU-EAST AFRICA. sinian origin, and the Abyssinians themselves look upon them an deftcondantn of the ancient Aksumites. They are generally of a dark complexion, and individuals are often found amongst them nearly as black as the Nijjritians of western Africa. Well-proportioned, tall, strong, and broad-shouldered, the Kunama are one of the healthiest and most vigorous peoples of the continent. Sickly persons are un- known, and the disgraceful diseases so common amongst the Abyssinian highlanders and the Arab lowlanders have not yet contaminated their race. Like the Nuers and Denkas of the Upper Nile, they often rest standing on one foot. They rarely su£Fer from the fevers so dangerous to strangers, and many of them attain an advanced age. However, they have a certain tendency to stoutness, and in this respect present a singular contrast to their neighbours, the Barea, and especially to the Arabs. The Eunama attribute their good, health to the scars with which they cover the face and body — and which they look upon as signs of beauty — as well as a sacred writing proclaiming their origin. The Barea are not of such light complexion as the Eunama, and are usually weaker and less shapely ; many blind persons are found in their tribes, especially in the vicinity of the marshy shallows of the river Barka. Whilst nearly all the Eunama have a family likeness, the Barea present a g^eat diversity of types, and, excepting the women, have rarely regular features. The languages of the two peoples are also different, although both may be classed provisionally in the "Hamitic" group, while in some respects they appear to be allied with the Nuba idiom. It will be possible to fix their position definitely when all the dialects of North-East Africa have been as carefully studied as the Bazena of the Eunama, and the Nerebena of the Barea, have been by Munzinger, Edlund, Halevy, and Reinisch. The speech of the Eunama is unaccentuated, and without harsh consonants ; uniform and soft, it corresponds perfectly with the peaceful character of the nation. Very few of the Eunama speak any language than their own, whilst nearly all the Barea under- stand the Tigr4 of their Abyssinian neighbours. There is a rich treasure in the popular songs and melodies of the Eunama, which have not yet been collected by European explorers. ^ " ■-■ -' • '. ' >vwk f •■; The Eimama and Barea are pre-eminently agriculturists, all cultivating the land without distinction of sex, position, or fortune. During the rainy season the plough never rests, and, unlike their neighbours, they have no idle days consecrated to religious feasts. All the domestic animals are used for work ; the camels, asses, and homed cattle are harnessed to the plough, and if these cannot bo had, the men or women take their place. Everyone has his farm, and plots of land are set apart even for the slaves, who are allowed sufficient time for its cultivation. The public domain, at the disposition of all, is of sufficient size to enable the labourer to select another piece of land, and thus replace the field exhausted by a long term of culti- vation ; but the rotation of these allotments is usually made in a regular order around the scattered huts in which the families reside. Wherever the hills have a decided slope, they are cultivated in terraces sustained by stone walls. The Bazen are never daunted by any kind of work. Peaceful labourers engaged exclusively in tilling the land, neither the Bazen nor the Barea are grouped in villages, as they I- ' | i!i i ^ .< | |Wn ;i - i .. The Hotem, Zabalat, and Jaltn Tribes. Side by side with the Bazen, and other " Shangallas," live other peoples possibly of kindred origin, although even those whose physical type shows unmistakable signs of the predominance of Negpro blood call themselves Wold-el-Arab, or "Sons of Arabs." If only the chiefs, the descendants of conquering families from the Arabian peninsula, succeed in preserving their genealogy and their language, the tribes, although of native origin, claim Arab descent and are frequently taken for Arabs. Besides, there are undoubtedly populations living west of the Red Sea who have come from the east, and who are known to have crossed the Rod Sea within historic or recent times. Thus in the vicinity of Akiq, the Hotem Mohammedans, a tribe armed with guns, are of pure Arab blood. So recently as 1865 their numbers were largpely increased by fresh immigrants from the coast of Yemen. The voyage from coast to coast presents little difficulty, and if the English vessels did not carefully watch all the ports, the relations between Arabia and the Sudan would be ntffioiently frequent to rapidly modify the political equilibrium of these regions. Amongst the true Arab tribes of the Sudan, the missionary Beltrame mentions the Zabalat pastors, the " Handful of Men," or, as they are also called, the Abu- Jerid, or " Fathers of the Palms," who live between the Dender and the Blue Nile, above Senaar. They are said to have come from Yemen before the conversion of their kinsmen to Islam, for they am not Mohammedans, and no traces of the Mussidman practices are to be found in their cult. They are fire-worshippers, as were so many South Arabian tribes before the advent of Mohammed, and as were also the Blem- myes, who, according to Procopius, were in the habit of sacrificing men to the sun. Their complexion is lighter than that of the neighbouring populations, and betrays a reddish hue ; according to Lejean, they have blue eyes and light smooth hair. The gum obtained from the aunt acacias enters largely into their diet. They jealously preserve the purity of their race, and they claim never to have intermarried with foreign tribes. They do not tolerate slavery, because the introduction of servants mrmmmmmru ■»^ ii" 284 NOHTH-EAST AFRICA. into thn family cin'l<< would havo the fatal ronult of contaminating thuir hluod. n<>in^ an "olocted" race, thoir chief ambition is to maintain tli(>ir iiidupomliMtuo, and to Hvo in poaco. On this account their forofathorn withdrew from the outer world, iind they thom»elvoH hocIc to live iHoluted, protected from the niuruuding trilws by doM»rt zonoH. They rocogniMo the cxiNtnnco of one God ulono, who niunifcHts himwlf in the ntarH, the Hun, and (ire. When they pray they look townrdH the HtarH, or t\irn towards the rimng or setting nun, or oIhc light a great fire and watch the tongucH of flame flanhing up in the wind. Fire ih to them a great purifler ; on burying their dead, the head turned towurdH the rising sun, they light u funeral pyre on the grave, as if to draw the soul of the departed into the Hery vortex. They also believe in the existence of a supremo demon, the god of darkness, uud have recourse to sacrificcH in order to conjure this dangerous enemy. The Zalabats are monogamists, but should a young girl fail to find a husband, or become a widow soon after marriage, it is the custom for her nearest relation to wed her ; thus it occasionally happens that a brother becomes the husband of his own sister. The government of the tribe is entirely regulated by their customs, which are interpreted by the elders ; by them also the chief is chosen, now in one family, now in another, no other obligation being imposed upon them than to choose the "best." The Julina or Agalin^ of Senaar and the Atbara Valley are also looked upon as Arabs, and in this country no one doubts their noble descent ; the Arabic spoken by them is much purer than that of the other nomad tribes in Xubia. They are distinguished from all the other inhabitants of the country by their love of study, their commercial instincts, and their religious zeal, although they are not fanatics. The men and women on the banks of the Nile wear large hats of foliage to protect themselves from the sun. Many of the neighbouring populations who call them- selves Arabs, without probably being so, are in many respects really assimilated to the Arabs. v ' ' ' ' . • • — ^ The Bejas. ^'■■'■'' '" "^ ""■■■':,':' The Bejas, the Blemmyes of the ancients, perhaps the Bonkas or BongM whose name is found on the inscriptions of Aksum, constitute one of the ethnical groups represented by the greatest number of tribes. North and south of the Bazen territory they occupy nearly all the region comprised between the Blue Nile and the northern Abyssinian advanctd ranges. Still farther north the bulk of the nation, which appears to have preserved its ethnical name under the form of Bish&rin, stretches far into Lower Nubia, occupying all the land comprised between the great western bend of the Nile and the Red Sea coast ; besides, several Beja tribes also live west of i.e main stream in Kordofan and even in Dar-For. The " Nubians " recently exhibited at the Jardin d'Acclimatation in Paris were nearly all Bejas from Eassala and the surrounding district. The southern peoples south of the caravan route between Berber and Suakin, have no national cohesion with the kindred tribes. Most of them are even mutually hostile to each other, and never cease their quarrels except to unite against a foreign invader. Thus the oir hlood. )pon THE BEJA8. 286 clans banded together at the time of the Turkish invasion ; but their confederation did not last long, and under the Egyptian rule the tribes have again become scattered into a multitude of commimities without common concert. The Bcjas, rather than the Abyssinians, are probably the " Ethiopians " of Herodotus, the civilised people who built the city of Meroe and its pyramids. In the Middle Ages the Bejas also constituted a powerful state, whose capital was Aloa, on the Blue Nile, about 12 miles above Khartimi. At this period the Bejas were Christians, at least in the vicinity of the confluence. When their city was over- thrown by the Funj and they returned to the steppes they also embraced the religion of the nomad pastors. All the Bejas are Mohammedans, although most of them, like the Bedouins of Syria and the Arabian peninsala, are only so in name, in spite of tlie ardour with which they have enrolled themselves amongst the followers of the Mahdi, under whose guidance they have regained a certain national unity. Of all the southern Beja tribes, the most powerful is that of the Hadendoas, who roam over the Taka steppes, between the Gash and the Atbara to the west, and the Barka to the east, although in their mig^ting and pillaging expeditions they often pass beyond these limits. According to Munzinger, they number about one million perso'ns. Another nmnerous people are the Shukurieh or Shuk- rieh, a nation of pastors herding their flocks between the Nile and the Atbara, and cultivating the irrigable valleys in the neighbourhood of Kassala. The Hallengas occupy the narrow zone comprised between the Atbara and the Gash, while the Hamran dwell on the plains where the Atbara effects its junction with the Bahr-Settit. Farther to the west and south-west, some Dabeina hordes roam over the steppes watered by the Bahad. In the " Mesopotamia " of the two Niles the soil is disputed between the Abu-Rdf, or Eufah, the Jalins, and the Hassanieh, that is to say the •• Cavaliers " or "Horsemen." Lastly, to the east of the Hadendoas, the circumference of the advanced plateau of Abyssinia between the Barka and the Red Sea, nearly as far as the gates of Suakin, is occupied by the Beni-Amers. According to Hartmann the Hamrans, whom he calls Homrans, that is to say the " Reds," are related to the Agau. Nevertheless, all these populations call themselves Arabs, and are generally considered as such on account of the religion they profess, their pastoi^ and warlike habits, and also on account of the language henceforth adopted by them. Besides, it is certain that the Arab element is strongly represented in these nomad Beja tribes, as is proved by numerous families whose type is absolutely identical with that of the Arabs of the Asiatic peninsula. According to tradition they are descended from the tribe of the TJled- Abbas, in Hejaz. In the greatest part of the Beja countries, the original dialects are giving way before the language of the Koran ; but they still survive, at least in a state of patois, in the vicinity of the Abyssinian mountains. Almqvist, who has composed a general grammar of the Beja idioms, recognises four principal dialects, without counting the jargons which the himters love to speak, probably because they are under the influence of the superstition, so common in many countries, that certain local words have the power of fascinating animals. The original i^, ' ;ff ff fJ Wi'P ». ' ' ^ _ f'''t*>* y riti y 7^»i wBWy i j ii» t ' ,lJi y»fti ^^ «y»«y ^ ii y iii y, y^ ^ NORTH-EAST AFRICA. language spoken by the Hadendoas, the Bish&rin, and half of the Beni-Amers, is " Bedouin " (Bedawieh, or Bejavi), which however, in spite of its name, is not an Arabic dialect, although in many respects connected with the Semitic group uf languages. The Bejas, taken as a whole, and apart from the local varieties, are one of the African tribes most distinguished by their handsome features and elegant forms. The children are as a rule extremely pretty and vivacious, and young women are frequently met amongst them whose regiilar features and haughty carriage make Fig. 76.— SauKUKUu Bua. <«'./' ' .1 .7 them perfect models of physical beauty. In the families of some of the Beni- Amer chiefs, who have slaves to prepare their meals, which are more choice than those of the ordinary nomads, stoutness is by no means rare. The complexion of the nobles is also much lighter than that of the people. Nearly all the Bejas are very swift runners, which they attribute to their frugal diet, consisting entirely of milk and farinaceous aliments. Their arms are very long in proportion to the rest of the body. Explorers are struck with the similarity of type between the Bejas, the Afars, the Ilm-Ormas, and even the Bantus of Southern Africa. In spite of their pretension to the title of Arabs, several of the Beja tribes have preserved the customs of the Neg^ populations, as regards costume and the Amers, is is not an group of ne of the nt forms, romen are age make ' ' ,V. '' ' ' ! the Beni- ihoice than aplexion of e Bejas are entirely of tion to the )etween the yrica. In tribes have le and the THE BEJAS. 287 scarring of the body. Their warriors have not yet completely ceased wearing coats of mail, while some of the tribes still use primitive weapons, amongst others a plain or spiked stick. The bulk of the Bejas wear their hair very thick as a protection bgainst the sun. On a level with the eyes they draw a circle round ihe head, above which the hair rises straight up like a huge mop, distinct tufts forming a crest at each side and at the back, which serve as a protection to the ears and the nape of the neck. A scratcher, usually a porcupine quill, is stuck through this black headdress, which is often saturated with butter. Most of the Bejas are said in their youth to possess considerable intelligence, while their development is greatly arrested after puberty. They are said to be bounded in their ideas, obstinate, boastful, rude, disrespectful to their parents, and careless of the welfare or safety of their guests. They give themselves up exclu- sively to cattle-breeding, and migrate from pasturage to pasturage, although one of their tsaga, or encampments, may be considered as the official residence. Custom forbids that anything in this place shoidd be touched ; marauders may seize the flocks, but they respect the tents. The Hadendoas possess an excellent breed of camels, which enables them suddenly to appear at great distances from their usual camping-grounds, and escape with th^ir booty before the warriors have had time to assemble so as to overtake them. The numerous Beja tribes also consider it a point of honour to breed war-horses, although in many places they are fain to be content with small wiry animals of Abyssinian extraction; the larger and stronger Dongola steeds suffer greatly from the climate, and the chiefs are compelled to be constantly renewing their studs. Some of the Beja peoples are agriculturists, but they use very rudimentary instruments, a stick burnt to a point serving as a plough. Here and there certain industries have also survived, inherited from the Blemmyes, such as weaving, iron-smelting and forging, and making filigree work. The straight two-edged sword, the favourite weapon of the Bejas, is generally of Cbrmaii manufacture, but they also forge excellent weapons, swords and daggers; the scabbards are of wood, covered with leather, and amongst the rich embellished with elephants' ears. The shields they use are made of rhinoceros hide, or the skins of other large animals. Commerce is actively carried on amongst all the tribes, and in this respect the Bejas contrast singularly Mrith their neighbours the Bazen or Eunama. The customs of the Bejas, especially those which relate to marriage and the social position of women, are still very different from those of the Arabs ; the contrast is complete between the precepts of the Koran and the traditional prac- tices of divers origin. In certain respects the women are treated with unspeak- able cruelty. Parents are oblig^ to make their daughters undergo dreadful surgical operations, without which they must renounce all hopes of obtaining a husband. But after marriage the wife is in no way under the control of the husband. She can return to her mother's tent whenever she pleases, and after the birth of a child she has the right to repudiate her husband, who must make her a present in order to be accepted again. If he insults or speaks rudely to her he is driven from the ^«nt, and can only obtain re-admittance by presenting her with i; i! ii f f I! ffy ] myi ^ wi' m ii|| .] i . »i . ' ,ff i w ^f!»»if' i ;M » i>iU ' j^jM i Fazogl, Famata. Fazogl, which has given its name to the upper province of the Blue Nile, and was, before the Egyptian rule, the residence of a powerful king, is now little more than a mere hamlet. As ^ ggpital it has been replaced by the town of Famaka, where Mohammed Ali had a palace built at the time of his visit to his southern possessions in 1839 ; a few scattered bricks are now all that remains of it. Famaka would be well situated as a conmiercial town if slave-hunting had not driven all the surrounding peoples into the mountains. The houses, built on a gneiss rock, skirt th^ right bank of the Blue Nile, near the confluence of a khdr and a little above the point where the river Tumat forms a junction with the Bahr-el-Azraq. Facing it to the south stands Mount Fazogl, the first high crest commanding the river to be met with on coming from Khartum ; hence it appears more imposing than many eminences of greater height, while the rich vegetation which clothes its slopes seems marvellous to those who come from the desolate northern wastes. The valley of the Tumat had already long ceased to be Egyptian territory before the great insurrection of the Sudan peoples burst forth. Nevertheless, Mohammed Ali considered that this province was one day destined to become the treasure of his empire ; he counted on the gold washed down with the sands of the Tumat and its afiluents to pay his armies and to free himself from the galling suzerainty of the Padishah. In consequence of these ambitious views he caused the upper basin of the Tumat to be explored by the Europeans Cailliaud, Tr^maux, Kovalevskiy, and Bussegger. But the expenses of the occupation of the country. 240 NOETfl-EAST AFBIOA. the wars that it was neces8.\ry to sustain against the tribes, the depopulation consequent on slave-hunting, and the surveillance of the coxivicts who washed the sand, cost the Viceroy much more than was covered by the product of the mines. Hence Said Pasha ordered them to be abandoned and the fortresses to be levelled, after which the towns were again reoccupied by their original inhabitants. Never- theless the native gold-miners found their fortunes where the Government had met with financial ruin. The grains, called tibr, and usually collected in the quills of vultures' feathers, are used as money to purchase the merchandise brought by the jellabi, or local traders. The principal gold-washing stations are on the western side of the mountains, in the valley sloping towards the White Nile, and in the ri'":-l',.'-'>" ■■.■".•'i'.'.' Fig. 77<— Fazool Gold Mimbb. Boale 1 : 600,000. , UAlilRt. middle of which rises the pyramidal Jebel-Dul, in all of whose ravines gold is found. The amount annually obtained is valued by Schuver at £1,600, on which the Sheikh of Gomasha raises a tax of about a f oui-th. The soldiers he has collected round him are mostly slave-hunters, who have escaped from the disaster of Sulei- man in the zeriba region. The Gallas who oomo from the markets of Tumat prefer another mediiun of exchange to gold-dust, and will only receive the " salt bricks " imported from Eastern Abyssinia in exchange for their goods. According to Schuver, the inhabitants of the Tumat Valley receive yearly over 76,000 pounds of salt money. Fadasi. Even after evacuating the country, the Egyptians compelled the riverain tribes of the Tumat Valley to pay them a tax of about £6,000 ; but beyond the district -"mf- )opulation rushed the the mineB. e levelled, ». Never- it hod met e quills of jht by the ' le western ind in the ■' ■/■< t' ■' ■ '"'.V '• '" • ,' in>' ^ 10' 'so- f!ch ines gold is 0, on which iias collected fir of Sulei- a of Tumat ve the " salt According ),000 pounds verain tribes 1 the district senAb. 241 of Fatfa8i, which stands in another fluvial basin, that of the Jabus, their authority completely ceased. Fadasi was the point where the travellers Mamo, in 1860, Gessi and Mateucci in 1878, were compelled to stop, not being permitted to advance beyond the hill to the south of the chief town, which has been named Bimbaahi, after the Egyptian " captain of a thousand " stationed in this place. Schuver is the only traveller who has crossed the boundary of the Khedive's possessions at this point in 1881. Bimbashi, surrounded by numerous villages spread j^er the slopes of the mountain, commands a very extensive view from its upland terrace. It is a much frequented market-place, although not so well attended as that of Beni- Shongul, situated hrlf-way to Famaka, in the vicinity of the g^ld washings and the ruins of Stnjeh, the ancient capital of the country. Still farther north, in a fertile district on the right bank of the Tumat, lies the village of Ohezan, also a place of assembly for the caravans. Here the huge sycamore-tree which shelters the square,, covers on market days a motley crowd of Bertas, Nubians, and Arabs, while the groves of lemon-trees scattered in the country recall the sojourn of the Egyptian garrisons. Senab. ■ ■•!■ :• Below Famaka the town of RosMs, or Ro»a'iris, whose houses are scattered amidst groves of dum palms, is also situated on the right bank of the Bahr-el- Azraq ; it has given its name to a d&r, or country, of considerable extent, governed by chiefs taking the title of king. Still lower down the village of Karkoj, surrounded by large trees which contrast with the barren lands in the vicinity, has now become somewhat important as a market for gums, and the converging point of several caravan routes coming from Ged&ref, Gal&bat and Abyssinia. It has inherited part of the trade which was formerly carried on with the city of Sendr, about 60 miles farther down on the left bank. This ancient capital of the Funj kingdom, built at the commencement of the fifteenth century, has lost greatly since the seat of government has been transferred to Khartum. Heaps of rubbish and waste spaces now intervene between the groups of cabins, and of what was once the palace the walls are all that remain ; the mosque, however, is still standing. It was in this city that Koule, the French Ambassador of Louis XIY., was assassinated in 1705, before he had reached the states of the sovereign to whom he was accredited. According to an Arab tradition he was suspected of intending to aid the Abyssinians to carry out their often- repeated threat to deflect the waters of the Nile southwards, far away from Nubia and Egjrpt. The inhabitants have scarcely any industry, except the manufacture of elegantly designed straw mats. Caravan routes run south-west towards the Blue Nile, leading to the two fords of Abu-Za'id and Eelb, formed by banks of shells. The Mesopotamian peninsula, as the Arabs call the " Island of Sen&r," is only sixty miles in breadth. According to tradition it was at the ford of Abu- Za'id that the Arabs, g^ded by the hero of this name, crossed the NUe for the first time in order to spread themselves throughout the Sudan. 16 — AF. up » i . niuj ii i M P!»pgw» L mmm^ i 242 NOETH-EAST AFEIOA. Wor MeDINEH— K AMLIN. Wod-MediMh, or Wold-Medineh, which after Sen&r became the capital of the Egyptian provinces, was also a town densely populated in its double capacity as a garrison and trade centre. It is conveniently situated, standing nearly at the junction of the north-western Abyssinian rivers with the Bahr-el-Azraq, whilst Fig. 78.— SrnAe. -' . Seala 1 : 60.000. --'■. ^ . .....rr- - MIIIM"--'-- '■'.''■"' .»:.•. •»• ••*... ^ . Jb I" .'■ «.••••«.•! •.; •.■■•••* . „. :;•- if/li; ■;.:•.•••. li' 15' •••. •;.•■:•••■■..•••' •. ■•■ mwm. ■'■"•:■■ .•*o- *o«': •'•■•. ".■ - •••••••.. o mmm ''-■■'•"■ ■ ■ •■' ■ •'• . .■ •.• •.;.-. Bl//|f ■'.> %■ ' ^.^;^•• •'•■.. ' * ' 1»-'---'.'' '•"•— '*' f»u|r» mm m '' . •■''■'• *••.•■.•.•••• y^^%mfffm'-^ '•■• ."•■.••••••• '•' 'Clf^^jf^'^^ffllmffnm^ '• ** ' ' "* ''•..■ .;A,t.^Oum Hamad _ ,. , ni1SBHI///M:'' '• ^ •'••.•.•.■•■ ■.'•.•;. rV V .•.'•■■•■■•:•..■■ ""*'' wSW/l/M-- •'"'•■••'•■ -''"''^'^^ •v *• !•• /•T?^B^B)li///M '. '•.•*»S'' • • . • •• .^—x^4 Wn//iH . '•• ■ •:■• ,' • •'•• '*•'• .,..•*•••;'*'••.■ ■.iij*!!!" •••• .: ,. • •« ;. • . ■ :.*. . . . . • ". i.i . '•; ■ ■ .*'■ • •*' •'•»•• "' Od* Tuam J* -23-^1 Am ■•■■■•.■.?•• ■ • • ' mm •:' '• •• ■••■ • * m] .•• •■;...•■.•••■• • •: . ••. . • ■■•V-' ■••;.: •••••••• • ii 11 •• . •?. HI k . • * Hill i-'-v •*■•■.•; -.r-.-i •••■;.•'. ••••■••'' M\wH' ■.••.;••.;■.•.•■••.■■•• •■•• •■•••' Uba^? , ll'-"'-- ■ ■■^' •■••"••• '^/i- WamVM** '• •• •.*•'-■.•• ' '■..: . ■\m.'' *•■•''•••■■'•■.••.••• ••■'.• 57 ,»■,-. ■ , . llHIi •*;••• ■ •» .-. '••' ■ ' ^ JR^-^'^-*-'- • •IH..ua|.^ *^I5''0Wt-^^*"'^"'-'^'': g'^'^ •'.; 3mvSvIw|k*'.. •..^ '••'.•- / ■ .. ■•.•■"...i-a^^^ •• .•■••• .:• •■■..•_ '35''4a E . of .Greenwich 35* 44' close above it is the mouth of the Dender, swoUen by the waters of the Khdr Mahara and the Khor El-Atshan; still nearer, but below the town, is the con- fluence of the Rahad, like the Dender navigable for eighty days in the year. The village, situated at the very mouth in the " Isle of Isles " ( Jezirat el-Jeziret), has taken the name of Abtt- Ahraz, or " Father of the Acacias," a term which is also frequently given to the river Rahad itself, the Shimfah of the Abyssinians. At some distance from the river, near the ruins of the village of Arbaji, ■wM|*WOT9R«Hmir««lP WOD-MEDINEH— KAMTJN. 243 )ital of tho pacity as a arly at the raq, whilst ■ _ 14* 40 • ' "J ;!* '•*•• ; '•• •'•f I '. «. • • •■• i • * ' '/• • • • 13' ' .*. • • *• ; destroyed hy tho Funj, stands tho town of MpHsalamieh, in tho midst of fiolds of durra, a strong place which tho insurgents took from the Egyptians after a long and murderous siege. Before tho war it hud become a considerable market, precisely because it wos distant from the river, so that the nomads had here to fcor the pussogo of armies less than in towns lying on the banks of the Nile. Below AbCk-Ahraz, on the left bank of the main stream, a few ruins mark tho Bite of Kamlin, or Kammin, where, under the protection of the Egj'ptian govoru- Plg. 79.— CON/LUINCB OP TMH Two NlLBi. Boale 1 : 2flA.000. iiJ'SO' 58' 55 L . or Oreenwicli , elkiiiM. af the Khdr , is the con- B year. The ■Jeziret), has which is also lians. [6 of Arbaji, ment, some European merchants founded in 1840 large soap, indigo, sugar and distilling factories. For a long time these establishments were prosperous, thanks to the cheapness of coal and labour, but more especially thanks to the monopoly possessed by the manufacturers, whose products the officers and soldiers were obliged to take in part payment of their salaries. But the forests have been wasted, the country has been depopulated, and the monopoly has met its usual fate, poverty and ruin. l ->.U.;»il.U5flgJJEUV.! •^"tfrv W^ 244 NORTH-EAST AFEIOA. Khartum. Ab far as wo search bjick in the history of the upper regions of the Nile, an important town has always 8tooi»toccurr«'(l only thn>0(hiyHuffor fho urrivul at Motiunmch of tho udvunotKl divinion of tho DritiNh oxiM^lition, or^ani/nl hy (iomTul W' l«'loy for the reliof of tho placo in tho uutumu of 1H84. Thus tho prtniury objt^ct of t)w oxpodition wan dofeutod, and Khartum bocuino for Boino time tho centre of tho Mtth'H'H T>ower in tho Upper Nile regionB. A few villugcs succeed Khartum and the town of Ff^'-lfaya along fhe banks of the Nile. But for a distonco of 120 miles no important plac«' is met till we r»'ftch Shendi, in the Jalin territory, whic^h is a collection of Bquare-Bha|>ed houHOB, cover- ing a space of about half a square mile on the banks of tlio river. Shendi, situated below the sixth cataract, in times of peace has a considerable trade with tho towns on the Abyssinian irontier. Opposite it, on the western bank of the Nile, is the town of Mdammeh, the depAt of tho products of northern Kordof&n ; in the vicinity the desert sand is washed in order to extract the salt which is mixed with it. Shendi is the town where Ismail-pasha, the conqueror of Nubiu and the banks of the Blue Nile as fur as Fazogl, received the punishment he so justly merited for tho massacres and devastations ho had ordered ; having unsuspiciously come to a ban(iuot to which ho had been invited by the chief of the district, he was burnt alive with all his ofticers. But soon after his death was avenged by rivers of blood- shed by the terrible " defterdar," son-in-law of Mohammed Ali. The village of Ouhat, 2 miles »mth. of Metammch, was the extreme point reached by tho British expedition sent t) the relief of Khartum and General Gordon in 1884-5. Naoa — MeroB. This region of Nubia is already comprised within the limits of the ancient Ethiopia, a region where lived nations directly influenced by the general progress of Egyptian civilisation. Numerous ruins attest the splendour of the ancient cities here erected, and, according to the statements of the Arabs, the Europeans are still acquainted with but few of the monuments concealed in the desert. At a day's march south of Shendi, not far from the Jebel-Ardan, stand the two temples of Nuya, covered with sculptures representing the victories of a king who bears the titles of one of the Egyptian Pharaohs ; one of these buildings is approached by an avenne of sphinxes. At the time of Cailliaud's visit no inscription revealed to him the precise age of the temples of Naga, but the ornaments of the Greco-Roman style satisfied him that the town was still in existence at a relatively modem period. Since then, Lepsius discovered a Roman inscription, and several sculptures which apporently represented Jupiter and Christ. About 12 miles north of Naga, in a desert valley, is a labyrinth of ruined buildings and refuse which the Arabs have named Mesaurat. The central building, whose ruins are still visible, is one of the largest known edifices, being 2,900 feet in circumference ; its columns, fluted and sculptured, but without hieroglyphics, are evidently of Greek architecture, and whilst Cailliaud thinks it was a priest's college, Hoakiu imagines it to have been a royal oouutry seat. I Ef^yptiiin ml. ThiH II udvunciHl he relief of lodition wuh M T)owor ia )e banks of ill wfe reach )UH(iH, cover- i(ii, Rituatod I the towns Nile, is the the vicinity xod with it. the banks of ' merited for ily conic to a le was burnt ers of blood- he village of y the British -5. ' the ancient eral progress ancient cities leans are still At a day's o temples of rho bears the oached by an raaled to him jfreco-Roman odem period. Iptures which ith of ruined tral building, ng 2,900 feet lieroglyphics, ¥08 a priest's NAOA— MEHO*!. M7 The remains of the town in which Cuilliuud recf.gniM>d in lfl21 the ancient Moroi>, " capital of Kthiopia," stand I'iO miles below Shundi, a few milcH fruin the right bank of tho Nile ; in the midst of those ruins are Mcattorod a few villages, amongHt others that of E»-Sur, which gives its name to the turabil, or pyramids. The pylons, tefnplcs, colonnadoH, avenues of uniiiialH and statues are still standing ; but the sandstone of Mcroe, excavated from the neighlmuring quarries, is not so durable as that of Egypt. Tho pyramids, to tho number of about eighty, ore Fig. 81.— PYHANin* or MiroV. 1 1 1 m.ooo. '. OnmA// 55*50 E . of Greenwich 55'40' 8MU«. divided into three g^uper, and mostly stand on hills ; not having been undermined by stagnant waters, these edifices have resisted the ravages of time better than the buildings on the plain. Still none of the pyramids are intact, most of them having been damaged by curiosity-hunters. When accompanying a military expedition to thie place, Lepsius with great difficulty prevented the systematic destruction of all the monuments of Meroe. In magnitude the Ethiopian pyramids will not bear comparison with those of Egypt ; the largest are less than 66 feet square, and many do not exceed 13 feet in height. m V- I 111 248 NOETH-EAST AFEICA. The numerous inscriptions collected at Meroe have resulted in the discovery of the names of thirty sovereigns who were at once kings and high-priests, and the very name of the city has been identified as Meru, or Merua. At the period when these pyramids were built, hieroglyphics had become an obsolete form of writing, the exact sense of which was no longer understood, and which was reproduced by imitation ; hence many errors crept into the copy, so that their decipherment has been rendered very difficult and uncertain. Most of these inscriptions are in the Demotic Ethiopian character, derived from that of the Egyptians, but possessing only thirty letters. In these inscriptions, not yet completely deciphered, savants have attempted to trace the ancient language of the Blemmyes, the ancestors of the Bejas. ,■,.•,•-... ':^v' . '■■ y Opposite Meroe, on the western bank of the Nile, was apparently situated the public cemetery of the g^reat city ; considerable spaces are here covered with small pyramids, imitations in miniature of those of the great personages buried on the right bank of the river. m i~ Mbtamheh — ^Eaicara — GalAbat. In the basin of the Atbara, which bounds on the east the peninsula called by the ancients the " Island of Meroe," there are at present very few towns, in spite of the general fertility of the valleys and the healthy climate enjoyed by so large a portion of this territory. Most of them are mere market-places, swarming with people during the fairs, the next day abandoned. Amongst these "towns" inserted on the maps of the Sudan, some are mere clearings in the forest or breaches on the banks of the rivers ; the largest are Qorgur and Dmgur, situated to the west of the Abyssinian plateau, in the country of the Dabaina Arabs and the " Shangalla " Negroes. Metammeh, capital of the territory of Gal&bat, and often called by the name of its province, is during the dry season the most active centre of the exchanges between the plains of the Bejas and the Abyssinian plateaux. To the south stand the abrupt escarpments of R&s-el-Fil, or the " Elephant's Head." As an emporium Metammeh has succeeded to Kamara, a village situated in the vicinity. Compared with the surrounding groups of huts, it is almost a large town ; with the "tokuls" scattered in the suburbs in the midst of tobacco, cotton, and durra plantations, it covers a space of about 40 square miles. Although plundered by the hordes of Theodore, it soon regained all its importance ; the hills skirting the Meshareh, an affluent of the Atbara, were again covered with huts in which the merchants warehoused their goods. The Arabs, Funj, and Bejas, have returned to the market, and brick houses, whose ground floors are filled with merchandise, now surround the market-place. Some five or six thousand traders, mostly Arabs, assemble at Metammeh, and over a thousand Abyssinians, porters, wood-cutters, and retailers of mead descend from their mountains to collect the crumbs of the feast. Many crocodiles sport in the waters of the Meshareh, and betray no fear of the vast isoovery of id the very when these rriting, the 'oduced by »rment has are in the possessing ed, savants 3tors of the ituated the with small ried on the ■■-0': El called by ns, in spite by so large rming with Ls" inserted ohes on the west of the Shangalla" the name of I exchanges south stand 0. emporium Compared le "tokuls" Eintations, it le hordes of [eshareh, an I merchants the market, arround the assemble at nd retailers last. Many of the vast i'iM v,'S J^ if il KASSALA- -SABDERAT— ALGADEN-DOLKA. 249 crowds, whom they never attack, whilst their own lives are protected by the sheikh of Gal&bat. Most of the residents in Metammeh are Takruri, who set the example of work and industrial pursuits to the neighbouring peoples. Not only do the Takruri import skins, coffee, salt, some stuffs and beasts of burden from Abyssinia, bartering them with the merchants of the Nile, but they also deal in the products of their own country, honey, wax, tobacco, maize, gum, incense, dyes, and drugs. They supply the Arabs with more than half of the cotton they use in weaving their togas. From the provinces of the Sudan they receive more especially glass trinkets, arms, and the talari, or Maria-Theresa crown-pieces, which are the exclusive currency in northern Abyssinia. The slave trade in this district, till recently more active than all the others, although officially forbidden at different times, has always been carried on. But it is no longer openly conducted in public ; in 1879, the sum obtained by the sale of slaves amounted to more than £20,000. At the time of the Egyptian rule, the governor of Khartum maintained a garrison of two thousand men in Gal&bat. At present Gal&bat has become an independent principality, no longer paying tribute either to Egypt or Abyssinia. ^ . GeDAREF TOMAT. Doka, on the route from Metammeh to Abu-Ahraz, is a commercial outpost of Gal&bat situated at the confluence of the Rahad with the Blue Nile. But in this lowland region the chief, if not permanent at least temporary, market is 8uk- Abu- Sin, or "Market of Father Sin," also called Gedare/ alter the province in which it is situated. During the rainy season S&k-Abii-Sin is visited only by the nomads in the vicinity ; but directly the kharif is over, when the Atbara and the other rivers of the plain are again fordable, and when the merchants have no longer to dread the attacks of the venomous flies on their camels, the caravans arrive from all parts, and as many as fifteen thousand persons are often assembled on the market-place. Before the war, gum, wax, salt, cereals and cattle were the chief wares in the market of Abii-Sin, and Greek merchants mingled with the crowds of Arabs and Bejas. Tomat, at the' junction of the Settit with the Atbara, is also a town where a few exchanges take place ; Qos-Rejeb, on the left bank of the Atbara, lies on the caravan route between Shendi and the port of Massawah. The ruins pointed out by Burckhardt are a proof that the Egyptian merchants also passed through this region on their journey from Meroe to the coast at Adulis Bav. Eassala — Sabderat — ^Aloaden — DOLKA. At the present time the most important town of the country is Kaasala-el-Luz, capital of the province of Taka, and, since 1840, the chief fortress of all the region comprised between the Nile and the Red Sea ; it is' also called Gash by the natives, after the stream whose right bank it skirts. After having served as a 260 NOBTH-EAST AFRICA. bulwark of Egypt against the Abyssinians, Eassala, when evacuated by its Mussulman garrison, appears destined to serve as the Abyssinian outpost against the Muhom- medan lowlanders. Situated at a height of 1,900 feet at the western base of a " seven peaked " mass of granite rocks rising over 4,000 feet above the plain, and its forests of dum palms, Kassala presents one of the most attractive prospects in Africa. It appears to have succeeded a still larger town, that of Faki Endoa, which stretched along the torrent at a distance of nearly 3 miles. Commanded by a strong castle, the remains of which are still to be seen on one of the " heads " of the neighbouring rock, this town was the capital of the Hallenga nation, then powerful, but now reduced to a few wretched communities of pastors and agricul- turists. The moimtain is pierced with grottoes which are said to hold the waters of a subterranean lake, and whose labyrinths appear to have been formerly inhabited by man ; tv few troglodytes are reported even still to live in the galleries of the rocks. By its position on the lower course of the Gash or Mareb, Eassala commands the distribution of the waters along the riverain lands. A Fasha even desired to become the absolute master over the fortunes of the tribes by damming up the river before Eassala, so as to deflect it westwards towards the Atbara, and thus force the Hadendoas to come and beg permission to purchase a little rivulet to irrigate their fields. Under the direction of the European "Weme, who lent himself to this iniquitous work, a dyke 5,430 feet long effectually dammed up the current of the Gash and caused it to overflow into the. western steppes ; but the Hadendoas, who felt it was a matter of vital importance to them, attacked the dam with such fury, that in spite of the soldiers who defended it, they soon made a breach through which the water flowed back to its natural bed. Before the rising of the tribes who favour the Mahdi, Eassala had acquired great importance as a point of transition for forwarding cotton, and vast cotton gins are still to be seen where hundreds of workmen were assisted by steam-eng^es. Eassala also prepared leather and manufactured mats and soap. The first attempt of the Egyptian government in 1865 to open telegraphic communications between Eassala, Berber, Suakin, and Massa^vah, did not succeed ; over eight thousand camels were lost in this enterprise. But a second attempt, in 1871, was more fortunate, and a network of telegraphs was finally constructed, the stations serving also in the capacity of caravanserais for travellers. From Eassala to Massawah the journey occupies sixteen days by the route followed by the telegraph, through the country of the Bog^s. Wells have been dug by the side of each station, between Eassala and Abu-Ahraz. In the vicinity of Eassala are a few villages occupied by settled Hallenga, Hadendoa or Bazen populations, and during the dry season; temporary camps are pitched in the dried-up bed of the Gash. Eighteen miles to the east is the iovra of Sabderat, whose artisans are occupied with weaving cloth and leather work. This place perpetuates the memory of the defterdar's atrocities, who massacred all the inhabitants and made pyramids of the bodies, so as to poison the air and thus prevent the repupulatiou of the country. .4iit- KA88ALA— SABDERAT— ALGADEN— DOLKA. 261 [ussulman Muhum- base of a plain, and ■ospects in ^t Endoa, Danded by heads " of ition, then d agricid- ;he waters formerly le galleries conunands desired to ng up the <., and thus rivulet to who lent aed up the i; but the tacked the they soon d acquired irast cotton m-engines. rst attempt ns between t thousand , was more >ns serving Masaawah h, through >ch station, Hallenga, camps are he to\m of ark. This ired all the r and thus To the north succeed the two large Hadendoa villages of Miktinab and Mlik, which are of some importance us market-places. To the south-east the Ba/en peasantry, half converted to Islam, people the village of Elit, built at a height of 1,330 feet above the plain, on an almost inaccessible terrace half-wuy up the side of a granite moimtaiu, scooped out at the top into a cultivated crater of quudran- Fig. 82.— ExagALA. "'';"'.■'■"■<■' }.->\^i\-_ V '•*"..■ e«*le 1 : 188,000. jreenwicK 56* 14- ■ SMilM. gular shape. The "boiler" of Elit is probably a sinking of the soil, such as is frequently met with in rooks pierced with grottoes. North of Elit and already on the slope of the Ehor Barka, is the village of A/gaden or Algeden, whose houses are scattered amidst the overturned blocks on the sides of Mount Dablot or Doblut, which overlooks a vast horizon of hills and plains between the two rivers March and Barka. Algaden lies on the route to Mecca taken by the Takruri pilgrims, who support themselves from village to i i - m p.i»w » i _ >'w m wT'i'i w »'H!^ g w"'i — ^-ffl- 252 NOETH-EAST AFEIOA. village by preaching, praying, and selling amulets ; in this way they have con- verted the population of Algaden, who are mainly of Bazen origin. In a neigbour- ing plain, the people of Algaden and Sabderat in 1870 gained a sanguinary victory over an army of Abyssinians, 10,000 of whom were left on the battle-field. ' ' ' To the south-east of Algaden, in the Barea country, between the Gash and the Barka, the Egyptians have recently founded two military stations, Kufit and Amideb. The first was abandoned in 1875, but Amideb was still occupied at the general rising of the tribes ; it is one of the places that England has by treaty handed over to the Abyssinians. Dolka, on a rock which rises to the east of the valley of the Anseba, long resisted the attacks of the Khedive's troops. In the neighbour- hood are the ruins of a town and some Christian churches which bear a few Abyssinian or Himyaritio inscriptions. The principal town of the Habab country is Jf-Abad, or Tha-Mariam, situated in a circular plain, at the foot of a precipitous mountain pierced with grottoes. Ed-Damer — Berber. i I Below Eassala on the Gash, and Gos-Rejeb on the Atbara, there is only one town in the basin, Ed-Damer, lying south of the confluence in the southern peninsula formed by the Nile and the mouth of the Atbara. Here dwelt the Makuberab tribe, whom Schweinfurth and Lejean believe to be the somewhat legendary ^Macrobians of ancient writers. But this town, which was formerly a brisk market, has lost its commercial importance and become a city of " saints and teachers." It has schools, formerly celebrated, hotbeds of the Mussulman propa- ganda, but it is no longer a rendezvous for caravans. Some 30 miles lower down on the same bank of the river, is the commercial centre of the great river and its north Abyssinian tributaries. Berber, ^ill recently capital of an Egyptian province, is the largest mart between Khartum and the Egyptian frontier, properly so-called. Berber, so named from the Bar&bra people, who occupy this region of Nubia, is officially called El-Mekheir, El-Mukheiref, or El- Mesherif. Before the present war, during which Berber has been almost entirely destroyed, the town skirted the river bank for a distance of several miles, its white terraced houses standing in the midst of acacia and palm groves. A few gardens surround the town, beyond which immediately commence the uncultivated, almost desert, spaces, visited only by the Bisharin nomads. Berber is the starting point of the most frequented caravan route between the Middle Nile and the Red Sea. At this point, the distance which separates the river irov^ t Ve soa is, following the winding desert route, only 250 miles. If well supplied Willi i'ood and \^ater, travellers can easily complete this journey in less than a week, although they usually take fifteen days ; sooner or later a few hours will suffice, thanks to a railway already commenced, and on which military trains were running in 1885 from Suakin, for a few miles inland, to Otao, the present terminus on the route to Berber. * When this line is completed, Berber will become the port by SUA KIN— 8INKAT— TOKAB. 263 lave con- aeigbour- ry victory h and tlie i Amideb. e general nded over ey of the eighbour- tar a few ) country recipitous I only one southern dwelt the Bomewhat brmerly a laints and an propa- }nimercial 1 recently 1 and the ra people, ref, or El- i entirely , its white n gardens ad, almost tween the J the river 1 supplied in a week, ill su£Sco, B ruiining ms on the e port by Fig. 83.— Behbbr. Sod* I : 89,000. which all the produce of Upper Sudan will be exported, and the Nile will be the commercial affluent of the Red Sea. . .^^■ The two caravan routes between Suakin and Berber traverse vast sandy tracts where the water in the wells is brackish. The route lies over granite and porphyry heights, crossed by the pass of Haratri, the water-parting between the Nile basin and that of the Red Sea, standing at a height of 3,000 feet, between mountains rising to twice that elevation. Before the war 20,000 camels, laden with gum, annually crossed the desert between the two towns, which will probably soon be connected by rail. Suakin — Sinkat — Tokar. Suukin, or Sawakin, is the safest port on the Red Sea coast, and resembles that of Massawah in its geog^phical posi- tion. The riverain zone of coral banks is pierced by a winding channel which penetrates over 2 miles inland, termi- nating in an oval-shaped basin about 1 mile from north to south. To the west are sand-banks which contract the sheet of water, and are continued by shallows overgrown with reeds. Two round islands, partially fringed with rooks, exceed the level of the basin by several feet. One of these islands, that of Sheikh Abdullah, is used exclusively as a cemetery; the other, farther south, comprises the town of Suakin, properly so-called. The chief port lies between these two islands, but vessels of the heaviest tonnage can also anchor north of the island of Sheikh Abdallah , in this species of lake, which seems to be surrounded by land on all sides, vessels are perfectly safe from the winds and surf. The port, opened in the midst of a beach rendered very dangerous by the multitude of reefs, is well worthy the name of the " harbour of the protecting gods," which many authors believe to have been given it during the time of the Ptolemies. Before the warlike events which have procured for Suakin a name famous in contemporary history, the annual movement of the shipping was about 12 steamers .S,aOO Tarda. 264 NOETH-EAST AFRICA. and 300 Arab vessels, which carried rice, dates, salt, cowries, and European mer- chandise, to be exchanged for slaves, mules, wild beasts, and the many products of the Abyssinian spurs, such as gum, ivory, ostrich feathers, skins, wax, musk, grains, and coffee. Suakin is the port where the pilgrims embark for Mecca, to the number of six or seven thousand annually ; the distance from here to Jeddah is about 20 miles including the deviations caused by the reefs. The slave merchants from the interior present themselves in the disguise of ordinary travellers, accompanied by their wives, concubines, and servants. But on their return from Arabia to Suakin, Fig. 84.— Suakin in 1882. RrtJe 1 : Nn.non. Iff 1.1 V cX 57*30 t. . of bfbanwich ,:>!'! .19" 57'8a OeptliK. to AS Feet. 32 to H Feet. 64 Feet and upwsida. Band* aod coral reeft ezpoaed at low water. 1,100 Tarda. they have no longer wives or servants ; divorce, desertion, and unforeseen events being supposed to have relieved them of their families and followers. The town, overlooked by several minarets, consists of stone houses with wooden balconies and " musharabiehs " elegantly carved. It is a cosmopolitan city, where the trade is chiefly in the hands of the Arabs. Turks and Hedarmeh, or " Men of Hadramaut," here meet the Greek, Maltese, or European merchants. But the native population live in huts of branches covered with mats outside the town in the suburb of El-Kef. It is a far more extensive place than Suakin itself, with which it is connected by a low bridge some 330 feet long, and since 1884 by a railway B • " ' II ' I ■ I HI i |W W» ', l opean mer- products of usk, grains, the number is about 20 ts from the iupanied by i to Suakin, mmm 'W tl ION-SINK AT~TOKAE. 255 Hft )lMt. The huts of 1!1-K«'< ski* he suuthern Hlvure of tho baain, oppuHito Suakin, A 1 exter.fl on both sid*^ "f !ia ato to H wr. Tho HudeiulouN who live in this B )urb "inr ' >v themsel^ -a in . , (m«poninf^ and stowing tho invrchundiHc, ami Hiipply the towt^ ^ oul, foi fowlH, I tter, fruits, vogotublos, and drinking water. In wintrr thi am twic< joro numorous than in summer, when thoy retire to graze their tl(N4 ,m the h, .1 mountains in the vicinity. Suakin, although it is well proteuted roiB pilb|fiug raids by its insular pusition, depends entirely for its Fig. 86.— Suakin Ui'Lanm. Seato 1 ; 8.000 too. i>S' L of Greenwich Deptbi. OtoMFiat 80tol60F«tt. 160ta880F««t 390 to 1600 Feet 1600 Feet and upward*. maintenance on the mauoland ouburb, and it has been found necessary to enclose the latter with fortifications, to protiect it against the Bejas, who recently rose against the Egjrptian Oovcmment. The vital importance of Suakin with regard to trade and political power is fully appreciated by the belligerents. The sanguinary battles which have taken place in its vicinity, to the west near the fortified camp of Sinkat and the wells of Tamanieh and Hashin, to the south-east before the stronghold of Tokar and in the oasis of El-Teb, prove how essential it would be for the Mussulman world to establish free communications between Mecca, capital of Islam, and ^ifrica, its largest province, popidated with the most fanatic of the faithful. Great Britain watches closely this continental port of Africa and, under the name uf Egypt, this power has definitely taken possession of it so as to bring the whole of the Upper Nile within its commercial and political influence. Hitherto the Beja insurgents P) I 206 NORTH-EAST APBICA. IiBye been able to maintain none but preoarioun relations with their co-religionUta on the oppnnito coant by moans of small craft oscuping from the oruoks along the coast undur cover of night. Before Suukin was bllccd by the rebclH, the merchants of this town withdrew (luring the hot season to the smiling vuUoy of Sinkat, which, ul a height of 870 feet, lies amid extinct volcanoes and cliffs of an extremely fertile reddish marl ; the sl()])e8 have boon laid out in steep torrucos planted with acacias and fruit trees. Tokar, u little fort situated in a fertile vulley irrigate . "• ) =. V N. *' ' ' *■* '■ ■.■,'"■ -mnr- mitK m w n Sw -roligioni*ta M along the m withdrew Mght of 870 h inurl; tho fruit trooB. inittU canuls !.'« provinco. abourei)^ are g coast may rior become of the Kh6r p basin well t is without way, a Beni- isels can cast Akiq the sea fcV i iiaV » "frtM!ir'i ii» x'n i fti » (ri ' ' l i ii' i i i* H,'ii <* inJ i ' l k^^i.' J B ''>'j i^ > W' *' » i ¥ff | i ' l i li>#W»^i«l^'** CLIMATE OP KOBDOElN. 250 30 to 1,660 places the ig a regular KordoMn is gh, serve as hides here, peaks rising the general el-EordoMn niles east of l-Ain. The remains of npure clays, it. ral region of ht of many itul and the iently inac- hbours. To ea, command 16 centre of les, raises its ding steppes, art roimd it ; ith water and laradise. To lous undulat- r arborescent >aobab, whose level, fertile, la are visible, B the steppes ther west, the the general Nubas," after itity of water re sufficiently ist and north- 5 ground. It ELordof&n has reached the Nile through this fluvial channel. Throughout the course of the Ab{^- Hableh the surplus waters form during the kharif season, that is to say from June to October, temporary sheets of water which are usually marked on the maps as El-Birket, or El-Bahad, that is, " Lakes," in a pre-eminent sense. But water rarely remains in this reservoir till the end of the dry season ; however, on digging in the sand to a depth of 8 or 10 feet, sufficient can be obtained to quench the thirst of both man and beast. Most of the other pools, generally called fulahs, are flooded only during the rainy season. In the inhabited region of Northern Kordof&n, estimated by Prout at 17,200 square miles, there are neither rivers nor ponds, but only funnel-shaped wells sunk to a depth of 80 and even 160 feet, as far as the mica schist bed, which forms a layer through which the rain water, filtering through the light soil on the surface, cannot penetrate. The water in these wells is reached by steps cut round the excavation. The scientific exploration of this country has proved the existence of eight, hundred wells, but at least two hundred of these are completely dry for half of the year, and the water of many is brackish or even salt. According to Ebjayrac, Lauture, and Matteucci, the general dessication of the country has been undoubtedly going on for many generations, and several wells which formerly furnished water in abundance have had to be abandoned. The annual rainfall, which is on the average 9 inches at El-Obe'id, somewhat more in the mountains of the south, and less in those of the north, is not siifficient to fill all the wells sunk in the hollows. Hence entire villages are abandoned during the dry season. As soon as the dokhn, the only kind of millet which flourishes in this dry climate, has been harvested, the cultivators migrate to the wells which contain a little water throughout the year, and do not retium to their fields till the com- mencement of the kharif. In the villages and towns water is a commercial article, and towards the end of the dry season it occasionally costs more than wine in wine- growing countries ; in 1873 a measure of two or three gallons was sold for a dollar. Climate of Kordofan. In spite of the altitude of Eordof&n, the temperature of this country is one of the hottest in the world. The season of intense heats commences in March, when the thermometer frequently rises to 105° F. in the shade, and the air mixed with the desert sand is almost suffocating. After the three months of the sef, or dry season, dense clouds are collected in the southern hori;!on, fmnouncing the approach of the kharif. The beg^ning of June is ushered in by heavy showers, very violent but of short duration, with intervals of fine weather. The rainy season usually commences with atmospheric disturbances, whirlwinds rushing over the steppes ; but soon the aerial currents regain their equilibrium, and the south-wrst wind, a continuation of the south-east trade wind in the southern hemisphere, prevails over this part of the north, following the direction of the sun. During this season the temperature is maintained with a remarkable uniformity between 77° F. and 92° F., the oscillations of the thermometer seldom exceeding 12° F. Such a climate would be very agreeable, but for the vapours and miasmas with which the air is saturated, I u T 260 NOETK-EAST AFRICA. causing residence iu Eordof&n to be very dangerous to Arabs, urks, and Europeans, who often fall victims to the endemic fevers. Towards the end of September, after three or four months of intermittent rains, the wind changes. The north-east trade winds, deflected south by the progress of the sun towards the tropic of Capricorn, now sets in, bringing cold weather in its train ; during the night the temperature occasionally falls to 69° F. Flora. ■^i i(t ':if^' %;f') ■ v-^ Thb uura of EordoMn is not very rich ; acacias, tamarisks, baobabs, and such- like trees give the landscape its characteristic appearance in the regions which are not barren or completely deforested. The acacias, which furnish tae gum of com- merce, belong to various species. The grey-barked variety, which yields the best quality of gum, is scattered in numerous thickets throughout the eastern part of the country. In the southern region the red-barked acacias, which furnish the least valuable kind of gum, extend in vast forests almost useless from an economi- cal point of view ; very few villagfers or nomads take the trouble to collect the g^m which exudes from these trees. The most important harvest throughout nearly the whole of Eordof&n, is that of the dokhn [penicilaria typhdidea), which arrives at maturity four months after being sown, a period corresponding to the kharif . This variety of millet requires so little moisture that it thrives better on the sandy dunes than in the hollows ; nine-tenths of the population live on this dokhn. The durrah, or Egyptian millet, is cultivated only in the well-watered mountain valleys. Wheat, sesame, haricots, tobacco, and cotton are found in a few districts near the capital. Hemp is used for interlacing the walls of the huts. Of all the vegetable products of Eordof&n, g^um is exported in the largest quantities ; the chase also contributes to the movement of the exchanges more than cattle-breeding. Ostrich feathers are the most valuable articles that the northern caravans obtain from the natives. But these latter have almost exterminated the ostrich in the eastern plains of the country ; herds of ostriches are now mut with only to the west of the Eaja Mountains, and the frontier of Dar-For. The steppes of Eordof&n would be admirably adapted for ostrich farms ; but at present this bird is not kept in captivity, and the hunters kill it to such on extent that it is yearly diminishing in numbers. The ibis is very common in Eordof&n, as many as fifty nests being found on one tree; this bird like the stork, is considered sacred, and the natives do not permit strangers to kill it. The people of Eordof&n have a few domestic animals, such OS horses, asses, goats, and sheep ; but the pack-animals belong more especially to the nomad tribes. To the sotith the Baggftras possess at least one hundred thousand humped oxen, trained to bear burdens, but quite useless for field opera- tions ; the cows supply but little milk. The scarcity of water in the plains has modified the habits of the native breed of cattle, which come to the troughs only every two or three days. Camels thrive only in northern Eordofftn, amongst the Eabubish nomads ; south of the thirteenth degree of latitude they perish under the attacks of swarms of gadflies and other venomous insects. I 'k i ^^ ^sfj i ti! i> 'ifa i< |j»' i if ii ^ji i i iii j^ J »'i; i i^i{ i j tn' iij>i i j^»!| j A INHABITANTS OF KOEDOPAN— THE MUSABATS AND ZOGHAWAS. 261 Europeans, mber, after -east trade Capricorn, emperature , and such- which are im of com- ds the best em part of furnish the m economi- colleot the throughout ides), which ding to the 38 better on live on this irell-watered found in a . of the huts, the largest langes more les that the have almost of ostriches e frontier of itrich farms ; it to such an ing found on itives do not istic animals, ore especially one hundred r field opera- le plains has troughs only , amongst the ish under the \ , Inhabitants of Kordofan. Central Eordof&n, in the vicinity of El-Obeid, is one of the most densely inhabited regions of eastern Africa ; in a radius of about 60 miles round the capital, the villages are on the average not more than 2 or 3 miles from each other. Each tokul, or circular hut of thatch with a conic roof, and occasionally the village itself, is surrounded by a belt of prickly hedges. The peoples who occupy these settled groups of houses are of a very mixed race, and the original type is very difficult to be recognised. < '• ,._ , ' Founded as commercial stations on the routes from the Nile to the countries of Central Africa, the towns of £ordof&n are places of assembly for the merchants, who here come to rest from their march across the surrounding deserts. The soldiers and slaves of every tribe who accompany these traders tend to corrupt the race and destroy its primitive elements. The people who are the result of these crossings are intelligent, happy, talkative, and " given to dancing and amusements." > ; : , In some villages the Ghodiats (Gilledats or Oowameh), supposed to be of more or less pure aboriginal descent, are still said to survive. According to Mimzinger, who calls them Eadejat, they are related to the Fimj. They dwell to the east and south of the mountains of Kordofan and Jebel-A'in or " Mountain of the "W aters," and, in spite of the conquests and changes in the political regime they still constitute an independent group. They acknowledge one of their own people as a sheikh and pay tribute to him ; but if they are not satisfied with him they beseech a fakih to take off his turban of investiture and place it on the head of another person. This ceremony is quite sufficient to effect a transfer of the authority. The MtsABATs and 55oghawas. By virtue of a long occupation, the descendants of those who invaded this country at an already distant period are considered as having the best right to the name of Eordofanese. Such are the Musabats, who say they are of For descent, and whose chief, residing at El-Obeid, still takes the name of sultan. Such are also the Eunjaras, likewise of F6r descent, who obtained possession of Eordof&n at the end of the eighteenth century, but who were compelled to yield their power to the Egyptians in 1820, after their defeat at the battle of Bara. About one thousand of them still live isolated in a few villages near El-Obe'id, and their chief takes the title of sultan, like tBat of the Musabats. Some twenty years ago a few Eunjara still spoke their native Fdr dialect ; but Arabic has now become generally emploj ed by them as well as by the sons of the conquering Forians. The Zoghawas, the remains of the nation which iu the twelfth century ruled Over all the space comprised between the mountains of Dar-F6r and the Nile, are still to be found in the northern part of Eordof&n. The other inhabitants of the country whose origin is known are the Jalin Arabs, who have nearly all the trade in their hands, and the people of Dongola, the Danageleh or Danagla, i In m ! \ ( 262 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. who were charged hy the Egyptian Government with collecting the taxes. Christian and Mussulman Syrians, Albanians and Greeks, are the non- African elements which are met with in Eordof&n, and which contribute to the inter- mingling of the races. But the modification of the type is more especially due to the people of the neighbouring tribes brought in by the dealers, such as the Nubas, Denkas, and Bongos. The Takruris, Fellatas, and other western immi- grants, travelling with the double object of selling their merchandise and propagating the doctrines of the Koran throughout the towns along their route. Fig. 86.— Cbktral KohdovAn. ;' 8e>I« 1 : 680,000. V)l Satamah •if !^' 50°4b' E . aff Greartwich il'lb' euiiMu have also settled down in the country, and constitute new tribes by intermarrying with the daughters of the Arabs. A great number of Takruri come to Eordof&n to offer their services temporarily at the sowing or harvesting seasons, and when they are well received they settle down in the country. The islands of the White Nile, which however, are not considered as belonging to Eordof&n, are nearly all inhabited by Arabs. One of them, the largest and best cultivated, is that of Abba, in which the Mahdi, Mohammed- Ahmed, revealed his mission to his first disciples, and gained his first victory over the Egyptians in 1881. '^gjfegjltiiftiiiMiiiiii^ THE NUBAS— THE TAOALAS. 268 tbe taxes, on- African the inter- ally due to iich as the ;em immi- andise and ;heir route, 15' , , The Nubas. The Nubas, who occupy the Jebel-Deyer, south of Kordof&n, and a few of whom are still found on other uplands, have a language of their own ; but it can- not be positively assei i«d that they are related to the Nubians, from whom they are separated by a desert and by other populations. Driven from the plains and massed in the mountains, they lead a precarious life, being considered as wild beasts and hunted as such. In Eordof&n the name of Nubas is synonymous with slave, and when captured this is indeed the condition to which they are reduced. As their small republican communities have not been able to form a solid con- federation, they make no resistance to their enemies. Nevertheless there are a few Nuba villages which by payment of a tribute acquire the right to live unmolested near the plains, and are allowed to descend to the markets to dispose of their goods. The Nubas dress like the Arabs, but do not plait their hair. They are completely black, with the face very prognathous, nor do their features possess that peculiar sharpness which distinguishes the riverain Nubians of the Nile. According to Munzinger, they are also amongst the least intelligent Nigritians ; as slaves they can be employed only in rude and monotonous laboiirs, but they are good-natured, honest, and constant in friendship. When they are in the company of Mahommedans the Nubas call themselves servants of Allah ; biit they do not appear to render him any kind of worship. Their only priests are the " makers of rain," and magicians who heal diseases by gestures and incanttitions. The rite of circumcision was practised by them previous to the influences of Islam. The vocabularies collected by Munzinger, Russegger, Ruppell, and Brugsch prove that the dialect of the Nubas differs little from that of the Nilotic Nubians, the principal differences bearing in certain portions of the language. To the west of the Nubas are said to live a still more savage people, the Gnumas, Negroes of tall stature who go naked, and of whom it is related that they kill the old men, the infirm, and those attacked by contagions diseases, so as to shorten their voyage to a better world ; by the side of the corpse in the grave they place food, a pipe of tobacco, weapons, and two pairs of sandals. Sl'lb' itermarrying to Eordof&n as, and when of the White re nearly all bhat of Abba, irst disciples, The Tagalas. The Tagalas (Tegeleh, or Dogoleh) dwell in the mountains of the same name. Although neighbours of the Nubas, they speak a language entirely distinct in words and structure. They themselves say they are Funj, although they can no longer understand their kindred of Sen&r. Their king wears the three-homed headdress which formerly served as a crown to the king of the Funj, and which has been borrowed from them by the deglel, or princes of the Hallengas, Hadendoas, and Beni-Amers. The Tagalas have not the fiat nose and prognathous jaw so common amongst the bulk of the Nigritian tribes; their features are regular, the expression animated, while their intelligence and skill are highly spoken of. As slaves they |i ! I)* It 264 NOIiTHEAST APBICA. are much more appreciated than the Nubas, and unfortunately the occasion has often been had of comparing them from this point of view, because they are considered as the personal property of the king. This potentate is regarded as a sort of deity, whom they approach only by crawling on the stomach and scratching the ground «fith the left hand. No one marries without the permission of the king, and no one can remain free if it pleases the king to sell him as a slave. The father has also the legal right to get rid of his children, and in times of famine the slave-hunters go on purchasing expeditions from village to village. The Mohammedan religion, which has recently been adopted by the country, has not yet triumphed over the ancient customs. The Tagalas valiantly resisted the Egyptians, who would never have succeeded in taking the natural stronghold occupied by these mountaineers had not disputes as to the succession to the throne opened a way to the invaders. On the plateau of the Tagala here and there rise steep hills, each bearing on its crest a small village surrounded by walls and thorny shrubs. These villages form the acropolis of the commune ; subterranean routes, excavated in the i-ock and communicating with the outside by concealed passages, receive the provisions, and Occasionally serve as places of refuge to the inhabitants. In order to give an idea of the large number of fortified villages inhabited by the Tagalas, their country is said to possess no less than nine hundred and ninety mountains, whilst one thousand are attributed to the more extensive country of the Nubas. The Tagala district might under a settled gfovemment become the richest in Eordof4n ; its soil is fertile and relatively well- watered ; its inhabitants are skilful, and almost the only people in £ordof&n who have succeeded in cultivating the steep slopes by means of terraces sustained by walls of loose stones. The low mountain range of Wadelka, to the south-east of the Tagala hills, is also sur- rounded by regular terraces, like the advanced spurs of the Alps, above the plain of Lombardy. The Tagalas, extremely skilful smiths, import iron to manufacture arms and implements ; but the deposits of copper which ejdst in their mountains are still less worked than the auriferous sands of the country of the Nubas. The gold of Kordof&n is not so much appreciated as that of Fazogl, on account of its colour. The Eababish and BAOoiRA Tribes. The cultivated regions of Eordof&n are eveiywhere surrounded by nomad populations, known under the general name of Bedoiiins, and divided into two main groups of tribes, to the north the Eababish or " Goatherds," to the south the Bagg&ra or " Cowherds." These names, which merely indicate the pursuits and the mode of life of the tribes, do not imply any difference of race, and perhaps both the Eababish and Bagg&ra belong to one and the same ethnical stock ; according to Brun-RoUet, the BaggarAs give themselves the name of Gema. The differences in soil and climate have had much to do with the difference in their icasion has they are garded as a scratching ision of the slave. The of famine age. The try, has not e succeeded not disputes the plateau rest a small he acropolis imunicating Occasionally of the large y is said to houaand are le richest in a are skilful, Itivating the i. The low is also sur- 9ve the plain re arms and iins are still The gold of its colour. d by nomad led into two he south the pursuits and and perhaps inical stock ; Gema. The nee in their THE KABABISn AND BAOOAEA TRIBES. 266 pursuits. The goat and the camel flourish in the generally arid northern plains, while homed cattle can obtain sufficient water only in the southern steppes. All the " Bedouins " of Eordof&n claim to be of Arab origin, and do in fact speak the language of the Prophet ; but, as Munzinger remarks, " speech is merely of secondary importance in ethnology, it is the manner in which it is spoken which makes it characteristic." Now of all the " Arabs " of the Nilotic regions, the Bagg&ra, and after them the Eababish, are those whose pronunciation differs the most from that of the true Arabs. A large number of the usual sounds in the classical tongue are unknown and replaced by other sounds, possibly inherited from a now extinct language. The Kababish, who are more civilised, thanks to their geographical position, have other occupations besides goat and camel-breeding ; they also cultivate the soil in the lowlands which fringe the Nile, and found permanent villages there, and as they are careful purveyors, they accompany the caravans from El-Obeid to the stations on the Nile. Some of the Eababish tribes wear enormous hats, similar . to those worn by the Eabyles of Tunis and Algeria. The eraploymenta of the Bagg&ra consist of grazing their cattle, himting the elephant, the buffalo, and other larg^ game, and even occasionally man. Directly the pasturages no longer offer sufficient nourishment for their herds, or when the gadfly attacks the cattle, ' they strike their fergan or tents, load the oxen with the mats which form them, and, followed by a band of their ferocious little dogs, they migrate to another part of the steppe. Carlo Fiaggia met one of these caravans of Bagg&ra nomads which extended for a distance of two miles ; including men and animals, it com- prised at least fifty thousand individuals, whilst birds, as if drawn there by the column of air displaced by the caravan, wheeled in thousands round the animals, ■); destroying the parasites with which they wero infested. Most of the Bagg&ra have a red skin, like that of the American Indians, and in bodily beauty, athletic form of the chest and shoulders, elegance of their hands and feet, they have but few rivals in the world. Their costume is similar to that of the Eordof&n villagers, their garment consisting of a kind of white shirt striped with red, which leaves the right arm uncovered; they adorn them- selves with glass trinkets, rings, and articles of ivory and horn. The women still dress their hair in the ancient fashion represented on the Egyptian monu- ments, and their tresses, which fall half-way down the forehead and on both sides ; down to the shoulders, are plastered with butter and aromatic pomades. The gilded ring which many women pass through the nostrils is often connected with a chain hung behind their hair. The men carry the lance, in the use of which they are very skilful, and the European weapons, Solingen swords and Li^ge rifles, have already become generally adopted by them. Few Arabs are so warlike, or so scrupulous in observing the duties of the vendetta, as the Bagg&ra. The Bagg&ra are amongst the most fervent of the faithful, and, under the direction of the Mahdi, they have eagerly thrown themselves into the holy war ; they have many times crossed the Bahr-el-Arab to attack the Negro popidations of the zeriba region, and tx)ward8 the end of 1884, the date of the last news Kt 11 r 866 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. received, the result of the war was still uncertain. In any case Islam, whilst spreading from Kordof&n towards the surrounding countries, is far from having accomplished its mission in Eordof&n itself, where numerous practices forbidden by the Prophet are still observed. For the natives the principal difference between paganism and Mohammedanism is that, in the former case, the amulet is a morsel of horn or rag, whilst in the latter it consists of a pouch enclosing a verse from the Koran or a prayer written by a fakih. ^ Social Usages. Temporary marriages are practised throughout Eordofftn; even at El-Obeid the custom of the " fourth free," which is specially attributed to the Hassanieh, is said to exist amongst aeveral families of other tribes. Polyandry, regulated for each of the husbands by a partial purchase of the women, would appear to be an extremely common institution. Amongst the Qhodiats of the plains and the Joama Arabs, no young girl has the right to marry till she has presented her brother or uncle with a child, the son of an unknown father, destined to serve as a slave to the head of the family. Amongst other tribes, the women., belong only to the strongest or to the one who can endure the most. A day is fixed for the young men who dispute for the possession of the girl to assemble before the old men and the women armed with kiirbashes, and tliose who bear the g^atest number of blows without flinching are judged worthy to obtain the prize. At other times two of the rivals lie prostrate on the g^und, one to the right the other to the left of the young girl, who, her elbows armed with knives, rests with all the weight of her body on the naked thighs of the young men. He who submits the most gallantly to these fearful wounds becomes the fortunate husband, and the wife's first care is to staunch the fearful gash that she has made. Several other customs bear witness to the barbarous energy of these " Arabs " of Eordof&n and Dar-F6r. Often when an old man feels his end approaching he quits the dwelling-place without telling his friends, makes his religious ablutions in the desert sand, excavates a pit, and wrapping himself in his shroud, lies down with his feet turned towards Mecca. He looks to the sun and then, veiling his face, waits till the evening breeze shall blow the sand over his grave. Perhaps the hyaenas commence to gnaw his limbs before he has breathed his last ; but he will die without complaining, for the object of his existence is accomplished. V Topography — :EL-OBEiD. El-Obeid, or Lobeit as it is called by all the natives, capital of the province of Eordof&n, and the first Mahdi's residence till the beginning of 1885, occupies precisely a situation which presents all the conditions necessary for the establish- ment of a large city. Should it be again destroyed, as it was in 1821 at the period of the arrival of the Turks, it would spring up on the same site or in the mmm 1 TOPOGRAPHY— EL-OBEID. 867 Islam, whilst from having MB forbidden lal difference the amulet is L enclosing a at El-Obeid Hassanieh, is regulated for )pear to be an oung girl has child, the son if the family. the one who spute for the n armed with b flinching are 8 lie prostrate ng girl, who, on the naked these fearful to staimch the hese " Arabs " pproaching he ^ious ablutions ■oud, lies down en, veiling his ave. Perhaps is last ; but he iplished. imme:.>^ffrii^^^.-^m3eifl;mf^mmmmg'm, AHU-HABAZ-MELllEIft— LABA-KAtMAR— KL-HAFI. 2(t0 tho villn^oa vo Dongulu. it is ia the t« Houth-eiut 18, articles of tho rising of ally the Hulo Mpulution of II tries, nearly 'lie exportu- to a sum of v^ould become ital of a new lostruction of as might be rough WadaJ as the inter- tther a colleo- he " Christian called, nearly huts of earth, I or branches, he cloths and the different the Jalin or mmigrants of d Greeks had ens skirt the ire sometimes ^een tho huts, )f the kharif, Id api)ear like 'e the floating including the Taveller even ;he capital of id the people, he tent or in porta, £132,000. huts of branches, so that no exterior signs might bear witness tu iner a courM) of the oasia of Halt water ; that of the covorod with figures in ng a oostutno 10 Safi, which, n all Africa, ientre of the itreanis. At razed in the era from the ind is dotted ;ly submerged )e of the lake, sretaries, and ''I."" "v. CHAPTER X. DAE-F(^R. |AR-POR, or the " Country of FAr," more commonly called Dnrf'ur, by fuHing the two words in a similar fashion to that in which tho French say " Angletorre," instead of " Pays dos Anglais," is tho region which stretches west of Eordof&n on tho route to tho river Niger. Dar-FAr does not entirely belong to the Nile basin. Its western slope, which has as yet been explored but by few travellers, appears to lose its waters in depressions with no outlet ; but if the rainfall were sufficiently abundant the wadios of this region, changed into permanent watercourses, would ultimately reach Lake Tsad. Tho streams draining in the direction of the Nile also run dry in tho plains, except in the season of the kharif, when the streamlets rising in the southern part of Mount Marrah fall into the Bahr-el-Arab. Wady-Melek, or Wed-el-Mek, that is to say the " Royal Valley," also called Wady-Mas-SAl, which runs to the north-east of Dar-F6r towards the great bend of the Nile, is also flooded with water during rainy years, possibly for ten or fifteen days together ; but it never reaches the Nile, its mouth being blocked by shifting sands. The enormous fluvial bed, nearly always dry, might roll down a volume equal to that of the Rhdne or the Rhine. Its sandstone or limestone cliffs, here and there interrupted by lava streams, are from 3 to 30 miles apart, whilst the hollows are filled with trees, which form a continuous line like a band of verdure in the midst of the desert. The eastern half of Dar-Fdr, belonging to the Nile basin, is tho most important part from a political point of view, probably on account of the commercial attraction exercised by the Nilotic towns, and because, in the neighbourhood of the mountains, where water is more plentiful, the people naturally settle down in larger numbers. In this respect Bar-F6r is a second Eordof&n, but on a much larger scale. Around a central district dotted with settled villages stretches the zone of the wilderness and g^rassy savannahs. A country of this description can scarcely have any fixed boundaries ; here camps, wells, clumps of acacias or brushwood, and bleached bones are the signs by which the traveller knows he is crossing from one district into another. As f ar ae I i 272 NORTH-EAST AFEIOA. can be judged, without attempting an at present impossible approximation, tlie area of Dar-For and its dependencies may be estimated at 200,000 square miles. This extent of country is bounded to the north by the desert, east by Eordof&n, south by the Bahr-el-Arab, and west by "Wadai, whilst its total populations, according to Nachtigal, amounts to at least 4,000,000. Mason, however, who has also visited this country, thinks that the population does not exceed one million and a half. '' ' . ' ' v ^ ' Progress op Discxjvery. Dar-F6r, whose capital is more than 360 miles from the Nile in a straight line, is too far removed from this great commercial route to have been frequently visited. It was not known even at the end of the last century except by name, and it was then that it entered for the first time into the history of geography, thanks to the voyage of the Englishman, Brown, who remained in the country three years, although rather as a captive than a free man.* An Arab, Mohammed el Tunsy, or the " Tunisian," dwelt still longer in Dar-F6r, and wrote a very interesting work upon it, which has since been translated into French. It is still the only book which contains the fullest and most valuable account of the history, manners, and customs of the Dar-Forians. The Frenchman Cuny in 1858 presented himself at the court of El-Fasher, but he mysteriously died there a few days after his arrival, and not even his diary from El-Obeid to El-Fasher has been preserved. The sovereign of Dar-For had doubtless wished to act up to the name bestowed on his country, " the mouse- trap of Infidels," who, it is said, " can easily cx>me in, but never get out again." It was to Nachtigal, the third European visitor, that fell the honour of describing, for the first time during this century, the interior of a country hitherto so little known. This explorer was still in Dar-F6r when the slave-dealer Zibehr commenced its conquest, which was soon afterwards achieved in the name of the Egyptian Government. The country was opened to travellers, and the European staff officers were able to draw up a map of it ; but the Egyptian occupation has not even lasted ten years. The governor nominated by the Khedive is a prisoner of the insurgent Mussulmans, and the frontier of Dar-F6r is again forbidden to explorers for a time. Physical Features. More truthfully than to most other countries the expression " backbone " may be applied to the mountain system of Dar-Fdr. Here almost more than elsewhere the whole Hving organism — streams, plants^ animals, man himseU and his history — are attached to the main ranges as to the bones of a skeleton. Without the mountains of Marrah there would be no Dar-F6r. This chain of lavas and granites, - whose general shape is that of a crescent, commences north of the fourteenth degree of latitude, and after rimning southwards for a distance of about 120 miles, sweeps round to the west. At the point where Nachtigal crossed it, towards its northern « W. G. Blown, " Travels in Afiica," 1799. „« »-«-zjiJUli 'iM-:! PHYSICAL PEATUEES. m ximation, tlie square miles, by Kordof&n, I populations, ever, who has d one nullion in a straight sen frequently 3ept by name, of geography, a the country lb, Mohanomed wrote a very ich. It is still of the history, of El-Fasher, even his diary f Dar-F6r had , " the mouse- out again." the honour of )untry hitherto e-dealer Zibehr e name of the i the European occupation has ve is a prisoner in forbidden to extremity, it bears the name of Kerakeri, which signifies " rubbish," or " rabbit- burrow," which term has been procured for it by the thousands of crumbling blocks covering its slopes. At the highest point, which is crossed by the route from Wadai to El-Fasher, Nachtigal determined an approximate height of 3,553 feet, which the neighbour- ing summits exceed by from 600 to 1,000 feet. During their short occupation of the country the oflScers of the Egyptian army, notably Mason, Purdy, and Messe- daglia, partially explored the interior of the uplands, measuring some of the crests which overlook the rest of the lofty granite masses. One of them, that of Tura, '" ' Fig. 88.— Central Rboion OF Dab-FAk. S«Ue 1 : 4,40(l;<)00. .00 backbone " may than elsewhere and his history . Without the as and granites, ■ (urteenth degree 10 miles, sweeps rds its northern in the northern part of the chain, rises to a height of 4,800 feet. According to Mason, the culminating point of the Marrah range attains an altitude of 6,100 feet, or about 2,660 feet above the low-lying plains of Dar-F6r. The rocks of Marrah contain nimierous caverns, several of which formerly served as prisons, some for the sons of princes, others for the viziers. To the north and south are secondary chains and isolated masses like those of Eordof&n. Such are the superb Gu'-ger Mountains to the north-west, and the Jebel-Si, standing quite alone in the plain and terminated by an enormous crag in the shape of a throne. A village is perched round these escarpments, protected by 18— AF. I 274 NOETH-EAST AFEIOA. a circular enclosure. In the more remote regions of central Dar-F6r are also a few isolated uplands. The confines of Wadai, towards the north-west angle of Dar-F6r,,are indicated from afar by the Jebel-Abft-Ahraz, or the " Mountain of the Father of the Acacias." A second height, better known, as it commands the caravan route from Kobeh to Siut to the west, develops its peaks, such as the Jebel-Dor and the Jebel-Anka, in a line with the northern continuation of the main axis of the Marrah range. To the north-east of Dar-F6r, the Jebel-Medob lifts -its sandstone walls and granite cupolas, here and there broken by lava streams, to a height of nearly 4,000 feet. Beyond this point extends the plateau of the Jebel-Ain, skirted by the Wady-Melek. To the east the Jebel-el-Hillet, which is skirted by the route from £1-Fasher to £l-Obeid, and to the south, in. the hydrographic basin of the Bahr-el- Arab, are still several other isolated uplands, connected by no intermediate ridges with the Marrah highlands. The Jebel-Hadid, one of these g^ups of hills, is very rich in iron ores. Some 30 miles to the south-west of the Jebel-Dango, another mountain mass rising above a plain, are the copper-mines of Hofrah, celebrated throughout the whole of central Africa. The mineral vein which is now being worked lies on the right bank of the Bahr-el-Fertit, an affluent of the Bahr-el-Arab. An excavation, 500 feet long by 50 feet broad, with a mean depth of 10 feet, has been dug nv*. by the miners, and shafts, now abandoned, have been sunk in all directions wifb>:' -.--^iusof 1,660 feet frOm the pit. It was mainly with a view to obtain these >[ ■ mines that the Khedive caused Dar-F6r to be occupied. Few other regioaH nave been the cause of more wars between the African populations than these now valueless mineral beds. Hydrographic System. The rainfall and the waters of the wadies are regulated by the atmospheric currents, as in Kordof&n ; however, it would appear that the higher mean elevation and the greater extent of the Dar-F6r highlands cause more of the rain-bearing winds to be arrested, thus securing a more copious rainfall for this region. Near the centre of this mountainous district, in a closed amphitheatre, lies a lake which has never yet been visited by European travellers. The rains are more abundant in the western region of Dar-Fdr ; and as the concave side of the crescent-shaped Marrah range faces westwards, the water- courses of this watershed all converge on the main branch, the Wady-Azum, a relatively copious stream, although its bed is dry for a portion of the year. On the convex slope of the Marrah Mountains the running waters, diverging east and southwards, become lost in the desert, and hence are unable to unite their sandy beds in one common hydrographic system. On the southern slope alone, where the rains fall more frequently, the rivers have a longer course and constitute veritable fluvial basins. Thus, during the rainy season, the Wady-Amor and the Wady-el-K6 combine to fill a rahad or lake of some considerable size, at which the Eizegat Bagg&ras water their cattle. L. ?6t are also a -west angle of " Mountain of commands the cs, such as the inuation of the itone walls and af nearly 4,000 skirted hy the the route from of the Bahr-el- ' rmediate ridges lups of hills, is ' e Jebel'Dango, les of Hofrah, 1 vein which is I affluent of the 1 a mean depth sned, have been It was mainly Dar-F6r to be irs between the bhe atmospheric • mean elevation ;he rain-bearing region. }hitheatre, lies a i'dr; and as the irds, the water- Wady-Azum, a ' the year. On merging east and nite their sandy >pe alone, where i and constitute ^-Amor and the Lze, at which the ' f^K ' WW W I \wmi9ff^\,i \yf»'* ^1 '■ii K lilt II Mi I !i! 1 FliOBA. 276 Farther westwards, other wadies send down during the kharif a sufficient volume to cause the floods to spread out into vast temporary lakes, in which the dunes and argilaceous hills appear like islands. Here and there are even some lakes in the steppe, such as Lake Taimo, in which water is found at the height of the dry season. Nevertheless Wilson and Felkin state that at Shekka, during the dry months, the people use the juice of the water-melon instead of water for household purposes, and that the cattle have scarcely any other liquid to drink. The upper Bahr-ol-Arab, which receives the surplus of all the wadies of southern Dar-F6r, is flooded throughout the year, and in the Bahr-el-Fertit, a noibLern affluent of the Bahr-el-Arab, water is always to be obtained at a depth of a few inches below the surface. The fish take refuge in the deep pools excavated by the current at the base of the rocks, and the river is said to be navigable during the kharif. The southern region, which is often flooded, is the least healthy, whilst that of the north, being drier, aud at the same time lying at a higher elevation, is generally salubrious. ''"■" >' ' , ■A.. '::: ^.^.■;;;, V-' - ■•>:;-■'; Flora.,; '"^i :..;. The flora of Dar-Fdr is identical with that of Eordoflln, at least in the region which is not watered by the affluents of the Bahr-el-Arab. The plants and wild beasts, as well as the cultivated species of the domestic animals, differ in no respect in the two regions. The same living forms and products are to be foimd in the corresponding climatic zones ; however, the western region of Dar-F6r, where water is more abundant, and the layer of vegetable humus thicker, is by far the richest in variety of species. In both countries, woods and groves are found only on the banks of the wadies, the intermediary tracts presenting the appearance of a steppe or even a desert. Acacias, tamarisks and sycamores are the commonest varieties of trees. The baobab, which in Dar-F6r is also used as a reservoir during the dry season, finds its northern limit towards the middle of the country. In t1 e moimtains the branching euphorbias recall the flora of the Abyssinian plater u ; here are also found cedars, orange-trees, citrons and pomegranates, which reminded the Italian Messedaglia of his coimtry. Before the war, the fruit of the tamarisk, kneaded into small cakes, was exported to Nubia and Egypt. One of the most valuable trees is the higlik {balanites ^gyptlaca), whoee fruit, neglected in the zeriba region, is used as an aliment by the Forians. The fruit, made into a paste with pounded roots, is also used as soap, whilst the young leaves and shoots make an excellent seasoning. The ashes yield a kind of pickle, also employed in their diet, and its wood bums without giving out smoke. Thus the higlik is to the Forians what the date is to the Egyptians. The palm is rarely seen, although the western districts possess the wine palm {raphia vintfera). Dar-For and Kordof&n are comprised between two zones of vegetation, to the north that of the date, and to the south that of the deleb palm. m m m N0BTHEA8T AFBIGA. Fauna. The southern part of Dar-Fdr also forms the northern boundary of the forest zone, which, however, thanks to the rains, encroaches towards the north on the basin of the Bahr-el- Arab. Here stretch the dense forests of El-Hallah, frequented by the elephant, rhinoceros, giraffe, and buffalo, which are chased by the Baggftra hunters of the Eambanieh or Habanieh tribe. The ostrich, and various species of antelope, are also found in large numbers in the surroimding steppes ; but the plains of the northern provinces are the favoxirite resort of the ostrich hunters, and the finest feathers are procured from this region. In the vast steppes which intervene between Kordof&n and Dar-F6r, the nomad pastors engage twice yearly, before and after the rainy season, in a general battue. All the domestic animals of the tribe, such as the camels, horses and oxen, used as mounts or beasts of burden, are brought into requisition and driven to the himting- ground, where the beaters spread out into a circle so as to drive the game towards the entrance of a narrow passage strewn with traps and well guarded at the outlet. Horsemen then fall upon the captive animals and massacre them before they have time to destroy or free themselves from the traps. Occasionally as many as three hundred large animals — antelopes, gnus, and buffaloes — are thus obtained in one day, and the tribe are in this way enabled to pay the arrears of their taxes. In the southern region of Dar-Fdr, the ardha, or white ants, exist in such numerous colonies that whole forests are destroyed by them. In times of want the natives eat these termites, mixed with the fruit of the tamarind. After sunset they light fires before the pyramidal hills of the " white ants," who rush out in thousands, and thus whole boxes are packed with them " like the boxes of currants in Greece." . , , , Inhabitants of DAR-FdR. The race of " pure Forians," as Mohammed the Tunisian called them, occupy the mountainous region in the centre of the country. As far as can be judged by the meagre reports on the tribes that have been studied by travellers, they are Nigritians of a dark brown complexion, the nose flat and the forehead low and receding. They are divided into several groups, of which the most important are the Eunjara, who till recently ruled over the coimtry, and governed Eordof&n before the arrival of the Egyptians. Although considered as Nas-el-Belid, or a " stupid people," the Forians have at least this advantage, that they lack the cruelty and avarice of their neighbours. Under their rule the people of Eordof&n increased and prospered, whereas they have become impoverished and have decreased since the departure of the Eunjaras. The Eunjara language, which after Arabic is that most generally spoken in Dar-Fdr, is said probably to belong to the Nubian group. But Lepsius has discovered that there are essential differences between the speech of the Nubas and that of the Eunjaras. The Massabat nomads, who are found in the plains between Dar-Fdr and Eordof&n, are also said to be of Forian race, although they are now assimilated to THE ARABS OP DAR-FOR— SOCIAL USAGES. 277 of the forest jorth on the b, frequented the Bagg&ra )U8 species of yea; but the hunters, and Ir, the nomad moral battue, oxen, used as the hunting- i^me towards arded at the them before icasionally as tea — are thus he arrears of ants, exist in In times of irind. After »," who rush the boxes of them, occupy in be judged Hers, they are lead low and important are ned Eordof&n el-Belid, or a they lack the ieof Eordofftn ed and have ig^age, which Eibly to belong are essential s. Dar-F6r and assimilated to the Arabs in speech. There are moreover numerous other communities, whose classification is a matter of great difficulty. All call themselves Arabs, so as to appear of more noble extraction ; but the bulk of them are probably allied to the Forians. The powerful Massalit tribes, several of which live in complete inde- pendence on the western frontiers of Dar-F6r and in "Wadai, are amongst those tribes believed to be of aboriginal descent. TiU recently they were in constant feud with the Habanieh tribe, who occupy more especially the southern region of Dar-Fdr ; but peace has now been restored. According to Nachtigal, some of these people are still addicted to anthropophagy. The Arabs of DxR-FdR. The northern part of the country, on the verge of the desert between Kordof&n and Wadai, is peopled by Barftbra immigrants, Zogawahs, Bideyata, and many others, and even by Bisharins from Eastern Nubia. There are numerous Wada'i colonies in Dar-Fdr which, like the other natives of the western countries, are generally known by the name of Takrur or Takarir. Dar-F6r has also been colonised by Fulas, belonging to the same race as those of Western Africa, and by Homrs, Hamrs, or Beni-Hamrans, who possess many camels, and who claim to have oome from Marocco. They live principally to the north-east of the Marrah Moun- tains, in the Om-Bedr oasis, and to the west in the Wady-Bareh, where they practice sorcery ; some of their families have even penetrated as far as Eordof&n. According to Ensor, the Homrs are distinguished from the other inhabitants of Dar-F6r by the respect which they show to their wives. The majority of the strangers consist of Arabs, or of " peoples assimilated to the Arabs," who have come from the north and east. Already some centuries ago, and pfobably even at a period anterior to the Hegira, nomads from the Arabian peninsula had penetrated into Dar-F6r. The Tunjur or Tunzer, who governed the coimtry and whose descendants still live in the mountains und plains situated south of El-Fasher, claim to be Arabs and are considered as such, although they are not Mohammedans, and although the peoples in these countries are usually classed according to their religion. In the opinion of Lejean they are not Arabs, but Tubbu tribes who have migrated from the north-west. The Mussulman " Arabs" also, who xuam in the plains, divided into numerous groups, are evidently of mixed origin, like those of Eordof&n, whom they resemble in customs and speech. In southern Dar-Fdr all the tribes belong to the great Bagg&ra family. According to Mohammed the Tunisian, children bom of mixed Arab and For parents die at an early age, whilst those bom of parents of the same race are usually of sound and vigorous constitu- tion. Consumption is extremely rare amongst them, and this malady is almost unknown elsewhere in Dar-F6r. Social Usages. The civilisation of the Forians is of Mussulman origin, and the Arabs have evidently been the instructors of the nation. Literature and science, if these two '278 NORTU-EAST AFRICA. terms can bo used in connection with a people who have scarcely enierpfcd from burburisin, are reduced to a study of the Koran. A few magical practices, probably of African origin, are mingled with the Arab traditions; >iid even during this century human sacrifices were made at the chief royal ceremonies. On the accession of every sovereign, and on other occasions, two young brother, were sacrificed with great pomp, and the king with his high functionaries feasted on their flcah. Agriculture is still in a very rudimentary state, their plough consisting of a kind of hoe which a man drags after him. But this occupation is, nevertheless, highly honoured. Formerly the sultan of Dar-F6r, like the king of the Funj in Sen&r, the emperor of China, and other sovereigns, was extremely proud of being the first sower in his kingdom. After the rains he went forth in great pomp, accompanied by the State dignitaries and a hundred young and handsome women, and cast the seed into a prepared field, all the courtiers imitating him. Then the people sowed in their turn each in his own field, and when the harvest recom- pensed his toil, the faithful subject offered up his homage to the " royal farmer." Nearly all the mountain region is perfectly cultivated in terraces, and produces cereals and cotton. But according to Ensor, at most a himdredth part of the arable lands on the plains has been reclaimed. Industries in Dar-F6r are still in a very undeveloped state, except those of brickwork and pottery. But the cotton stufPs that are woven in the tents are very durable and much sought after. By the natives they are even preferred to those sold by the Dongola merchants, which are of European or American manufacture. These latter are generally used as money, but salt bricks are also employed as a means of exchange. > ; ,; Commercial Relations. Since the annexation of Dar-F6r to the vast Egyptian poosessions, commercial relations had become frequent with the Nile. The caravans frequently journeyed between the river and El-Fasher by the market-towns of Eordof&n, or else directly towards Dabbeh, on the g^reat Itend of the river. Since 1875 the Egyptian Government has even projected a future line of railway following the natural route offered by the bed of the Wady-Melek, which is generally shimned by the caravans on account of the danger of attack from marauders. Before the Egyptian conquest, nearly all the traffic of Dar-Fdr with the rest of the world was conducted by the medium of the " great caravan," which was increased by numerous smaller " kafilahs," setting out from the banks of the Tsad and Niger. Every year, or else every two or three years, according to the political situation and the state of the markets, the Takrur pilgrims banded themselves together into a karilah in northern Dar-F6r, and the merchants combined with them in order to take part at once in this pious duty and in a profitable work. The great caravan consisted occasionally of some thousands of persons and fifteen thousand camels. This moving army, which none of the pillagir , steppe tribes dared to attack, did TOPOOBAl'lIY— EL-FASHER— KOnEH-TORA. 279 nierp^Kl froit ices, probably n during this ies. On the brother, were ies feasted on snsisting of a nevertheless, f the Funj in roud of being g^eat pomp, dsome women, im. Then the larvest recom- yal farmer." and produces h part of the <'6r are still in But the cotton ght after. By irchants, which lerally used as tns, commercial ntly jouraeyed or else directly the Egyptian ig the natural hunned by the Before the it of the world s increased by I and Niger, litical situation !8 together into lem in order to great caravan ousand camels. 1 to attack, did not take the direction of Khartum, or even that of the Nubian Nile. Guided by the stars, the sun, and old beaten paths, it marched from station to Htution in a northerly direction, attaining the Nile at Siut. Like the caravan of Kordof&n, it had its particular route, wells, and oases, and hence did not run the risk of having to fight for the possesnion of the water gushing fovth here and there in the desert. MoreoTer it was split up ir.to several sections, which followed each other at a few days' interval, so as to give t) e water time to collect again at the bottom of the wells. Some caravans, compelled to move rapidly, completed the journey in forty- five days ; but they usually rested at the stations and in the oases, and did not arrive in the valley of the J'^ile till after a journey of two or three months. Bearing the valuable products of central Africa — ivory, ost.lch feathers, gum, tamarinds, skins of wild beasts, and rhinoceros horns, to which were added slaves, eunuchs and the bulk of thecamelb of the caravan — the merchants usually remained about six months in Eg^pt, awaiting the return of the pilgrims from Mecca. They then set out on their return journey to Dar-F6r laden with woollen goods, pearls, glass trinkets, and chased weapous, articles liglit of weight but of great value, for the transport of which they did not require such a long convoy of animals. At the time of the French expedition into Egypt, General Bonaparte, desiring to open up relations with the Sultan of Dar-F6r by means of these caravans, asked him to send in exchange for his merchandise, " two thousand black slaves, over sixteen years of age, strong and vigorous." v.- ., ' ;': ■,■■ ' ■' . " ^'» TOPOOBAPHY. ^*^'' . Dar-Fdr is naturally divided into a central province, that of the mountainous region, from which the watercourses descend, and where the masters of the country have nearly always resided, and into the province** of the surrounding lands, including the region of the steppes. The (fdr or central region, which comprises the highlands, is known by the name of Torra ; the others are termed according to their geographical situation, D&r-Tokonavi or " the north," Dali or " the east," Uma or " the south," Dima or " the south-west," and El-Gharb or " the west." Moreover, all the well-defined geographical regions bear the name of dftr or " country," independently of the political or administrative divisions. El-FaSHER — KOBEH — ^TORA. The present Father, that is to say the " Residence," is situated at a height of 2,466 feet on the eastern slope of Dar-F6r, between two sandy hills, and on the edge of the Tendelti lakelet, which is fed by a wady descending from the northern Marrah hills. Its current, being retained by a dyke, supplies the inhabitants with water for more than half of the year ; however, before the rainy season the bed of the lake has to be excavated to a depth of over 30 feet before drinking water can be procured. El-Fasher lies nearly midway between the capitals of ■ ;,*iWr«- S80 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. Ill Kordof&n and Wnda'i, on tne regular caravan route. It is not the largest town in the country, being merely a group of clay hut* thatched with straw, with, accord- ing to EnHor, a population in 1876 of merely 2,660 peritona. The principal city, which was also the " residence " towards the end of the last century, is Kobeh, also lying on the caravan route some 30 miles to the north- west. Of all the towns of Dar-Fdr, it is the only place which boasts of a few stone houses, a proof of the influence of a remote civilisation. These houses belong to the merchants or the heads of the caravans, and are surrounded by huts similar to those which are found in all other towns and villages of this country. Towards the end of last century. Brown estimated its population at 6,000 persons. Omahanga, situated nearly midway between El-Fasher and El-Obeid, at the junction of the Shekka route, is also a large town, provided with an abundance of excellent water, which is contained in wells 130 feet deep. South-west of El- Fasher, in an upland mountain valley, the town of Tora, Torra, or Toran, which has given its name to the central province of Fdr, is also said to be regarded as a kind of capital, and here are all the royal tombs. Since the Egyptians have obtained possession of the country, new towns have been founded, the most important of which is Ibj'eh or Foj'a, the arrival station of the Eg^tian caravans. The oasis of Om-Bedr, about 60 miles to the north, has no settled villages, although it is the centre of the Homr populations. At times over six thousand persons and fifty thousand camels assemble together on the temporary camping-ground. ■ Dara — Shekka — Tuesha. Dara, in the northern region of the province, till recently enjoyed some little distinction as the residence of on Egyptian muuir or governor, and as the caravan station between Dom-Suleiman and El-Obe'id. A mere group of tokuls, it lies near the left bank of the Wady-Amur, on which also stands the villagpe of Memvachi, about 60 miles farther north. Near here in 1874 was fought the decisive battle which cost King Brahim his life, and converted Dar-F6r into an Egyptian province. To the south-east the town of Shekka or Shakka, which still lies within the limits of the ancient kingdom of For, was the chief town of the province of the Bahr-el-Ghazal, under the khedival nde. It is peopled with Jellabis or " mer- chants," as is also the case with a small group of villages, bearing the general name of Kobeah, but which is usually termed Kalaka, like the surrounding country. Midway between Shekka and El-Fasher, the principal caravan station is Tuesha, a second group of villages whose name is but too well known throughout the Mussulman world, It is a depot for slaves, who are here generally made eunuchs before being forwarded to Egypt. The routes converging on Tuesha are covered with the bleaching bones of these unfortunate people, whom no one thinks it worth while to bury. In its western division, beyond the Marrah Mountains, Dar-Fdr appears i» JA JMk mm/Mm » within the ' ' ovince of the bis or "mer- ^ the general ding country, n is Tuenha, a roughout the made eunuchs la are covered links it worth DABA— SHEKKA— TIJFlsnA. 881 rgest town in with, aocord- end of the to the north- uts of a few Ihese houses indod by huts this country. 000 persons. 3be'id, at the in abimdance h-west of El- Toran, which regarded as a poMMi no groups of settled habitntions deserving the name of town or village. U('re it is evorywhr'ro conterminous with the powerful Mahommedan kingdom of Wadai, with which it is connected by only one known military or caravan highway. Thi> drainage also lies in the same direction, all the streams rising on the western slopes of the Marrah range flowing intermittently through the Batha and the Bahr-es-Salamat westwards to the basin of Luke Tsad. w towns have val station of he north, has 18. At times ^thor on the ■ tl r.'i: ijJ! CHAPTER XT. NUBIA. HE term Nubia, applied to the country which lies beyond Egypt, has no precise geographical sense ; nor can any meaning be attached to it from a political or administrative point of view. It prob. bly had onco a real ethnological value, at a period when the Nubas, not yet driven back by other populations, were the only dwellers on the bunks of the Nile throughout a great part of its course. But wars and invasions have for a long time modified these former conditions. At the present time tlio terra Nubia is variously employed in current language. At one time it is applicnl merely to the region of the Wady-Nubo, which comprises that part of the river's course which is broken up by the thousand rapids of the second cataract, whilst at another it is used to designate the whole of the region bounded north by the rapids of ARHuan, south by the junction of the two Niles, east by the Red Sea, and west by the trackless desert. The natural geographical limits of Nubia, on the southern side, seem to be formed by the junction of the Nile and Atbara, and by the route from Berber to Suiikin. Nubia, thus bounded in the direction of the Abyssinian plattaux, does not include any of those regions which are connected with Abyssinia, properly so-called, by their mountains, hydrog^phio system, or populations. Its approximate area within these limits and on the western side us far as the twenty-seventh degree of east longitude, is estimated at 100,000 square miles, with a population of about 1,000,000. According to Ruppell, the arable land of Nubia, limited by t> J' «ert, is not more than 1,300 square miles in extent, and all the inhabitants are concen- trated within this fertile riverain tract. The region, some hundreds of miles broad, which north of th. Atbara and Barka separates the valley of the Nile from the Red Sea coas' , ? ' commanded by chains of heights, similar to those traversing the territory of the Hadendoas, Hallengas, and Bazens ; but these chains, separated f ' om the Abyssinian spurs by the deep breaches and by the nearly always dried-up beds of numerous wadies, constitute a special orthographic system. Whilst the Abyssinian chaiu, although abruptly terminated by the deep bed of the Red Sea, reappears as it were in Arabia as the Yemen uplands, the mountains of the Bisharin country develop their axis ,f: ,',>,:'i jmd Fgypt, ig be attached It probably le Xuba», not vollers on the and invaaions sent time tUo I it is applied of the river's act, whilst at by the rapids Sea, and west ), seem to be om Berber to aux, does not )rly so-called, oximate area ith degree of ion of about >y t>', a< "ert, 8 are concen- Atbara and mmanded by ! Hadendoas, lian spurs by »rou8 wodies, iia, althougb )re iu Arabia op their axis 6 a & o i L) 1 j;?j^|gp K ' ;! U :;.' i i Si^immimfmmmiia ^H* Mi^j^ wCBWaanHi mmmmsmimtr^ THE NUBIAN COAST EANGE. S88 ■ parallel with the shores of the Arabian Sea. Besides, known under different names at each of their several sections, they extend for a distance of over 600 miles to the very gates of Cairo. It is the Egyptian part of this long ridge which takes the name of the " Arabian " range, because the riverain Nile populations see it standing out against the sky in the direction of Arabia. The Nubian Mountains, east of the Nile, are also sometimes collectively terttied Etbai, a name which is more especially reserved for a hill which rises near the coast opposite Jedda. The Nubian Coast Range. The coast or border chain of Nubia between Suakin and the Bas-Benas, north of the ancient port of Berenice, consists, like its Egyptian extension, almost entirely ;., ,. , Fig. 89. — MxNBHAL KioioN OP JHB EtbaI Uvlands. ^, ; Scale 1: 11,000.000. 55* E . of Grt^enw'tch go Mile*. oiP primitive rocks, such as granite, gneiss, and crystalline schist ; towards the south alone the system presents extensive limestone formations. Rising gradually from the south to the north, it culminates in the Jebel-Olba, which, according to Wellsted, exceeds a height of 8,000 feet. Connected at this point with the mountains of the interior by lateral offshoots, the chain again falls in a north- westerly direction. At Mount Irba (Soturba) it attains a height of 7,010 feet, and at Mount Elba, the Etbai properly so-called, it rises to more than 4,080 feet, that is, about the same height as the Jebel-Farageh, the Pentodactyle of the ancients, lying farther north, and which Schweiufurth vainly attempted to scale. In certain places the base of these escarpments is washed by the waters of the Red Sea, i I / ,>v..w-.yC*i^rj:* 284 NORTH-BAST AFRICA. whilst at other points the 9ah6l or tehama of the coast is occupied by the low hills of the tertiary epoch, moving sand-hills, and coraline reefs. The pyramid-shaped islet of Zemetyit, which lies 60 miles off the coast in a line with the RAs-Benas headland, serves as a landmark to the vesseb rz 'Cring the dangerous waters of the Arabian Sea. The Nubian Qold Mines. , .,. The Elba Mountains merge in the interior with other heights of divers forma- tions, in which the ancient Pharaohs worked gold and silver mines. It is certain that, during its long period of splendour, Egypt was very rich in precious metals ; in this respect the monuments are in harmony with the statements of the Greek authors. Nubia appears to have furnished the grater part of the gold, and accord- ing to a tradition, to which weight is added by the heaps of rubbish and g^eries hewn in the auriferous rocks and formerly inhabited caves, the principal mining centre was at Wady-Allaki, which is a series of ravines stretching away to the west of the Elba Mountains. These ravines were worked till the middle of the twelfth century of the Christian era. The Pharaohs, Ptolemies, Greek emperors, and Arab caliphs were obliged to protect their colonies of miners against the attacks of the surrounding nomad peoples, successively termed Blemmyes, Bejas, and Bisharins ; but the difficulties of obtaining sufficient wood to light the mines or water for the miners were probably the g^reatest obstacle' in the way of profitably working the mines. All the supplies from the springy of the district had been carefully husbanded, and along the ancient desert routes, above the springy, crosses sur- mounted by a circle are still to be seen, indicating the presence of water. The description g^ven by Diodorus Sioulus, as well as the appearance of the galleries, shows that the gold was not collected in the sands, but extracted from the rock itself by the crushing process. This method was extremely costly, and could not now be adopted unless the mines were extremely rich, like certain Califomian " placers." But the first exploration, undertaken by Linant de Bellefonds for Mohammed Ali, followed by numerous visits made by various geologists, have proved that the ancient mines of Nubia are no longer sufficiently rich to be profitably worked. Hitherto no inscriptions or sculptures have been discovered in the mining region ; however, a column found at Kuban, on the right bank of the Nile between Korosko and Assuan, and the texts of the Egyptian temple of Radesieh, built on the riverain route to the mines of Akito, shed much light on the resources of the Pharaohs. Moreover, there is in the museum of Turin a fragment of an Egyptian map, which represents a mining station with its shafts, depots, g^eries, reservoirs, and temple of Ammon. This precious document, the oldest of its kind, since it dates from the time of Bamses II., is disposed in a way inversely to that of our maps, the east side, which is that of the Red Sea, being to the left of the sheet. It is as yet uncertain what mining district i* is intended to represent. i » «l jfJM l 't ti» i.. « |»l >lr M l li' i ' li ^: i >MI |ii |i ii W%yy >|l^ ■ THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS. 285 the low hills ramid-shaped le R&s-Benas waters of the The Central Highlands. , To the west of the horder chain which skirts the Red Sea, the mountainous ridges run transversely either from the east to the west, or from the north-east to the south-west, in the same direction as the portion of the Nile comprised between Abtl-Hamed and Dabbeh. Some of these ridges are continuous ; such, for instance, as that of the " Cataraota," which forms the natural barrier between Nubia and Fisr. 90.— Nubian Golu Hinbr livers forma- It is certain oious metals ; of the Greek , and accord- and galleries Lcipal mining y to the west tf the twelfth >rs, and Arab ittacks of the id Bisharins ; water for the ' working the Ben carefully , crosses sur- »r. arance of the ctracted from ly costly, and , like certain y Linant de e by various sr sufficiently From the Tcrin Faiqmu, reprndiieed by Chabub A. The Amifcroiia hilU ue (xdonred ted on the pirn, a. Oold Mountain. 0. Shrine of Ammon on the Holy Monntain. D. RoadtoTaMenkt-ti. K. Faee of the Uoaatain. F. Abode of Ammon. H HooKii for Steiing the 0jti >i^l^'.Ahn9u§a AlMiMVlntah.ChattrrQMf' py : Jl/m/km/ Afi^hBr'4h_ 52* 20' . eoHOeB. hills merely ive elevation eights in the en rising to Tubia present me stand out in the form igain, whose jpeared, re- 'onsisting of >8e sandstone >ffer more or places. In mbles away, ig the crest several rocks ings through Q very names avan leaders leights are a their forms, them palaces, of warriors, outlines, the in always de- its in these Dhes winding irious colours ;m in finding a are shaded rbluo; whilst us sands pre- ; red. Jasper, crystals are But on each mie changes, the disinte- their position of the wind, ud above the mnded heaps bifting dunes lere through- «IM<'^'. -^idOil^. > r-' .(fe L " m^.!iw' ' r wi ^y"y w w^ "w ■"■ffWiiiPP GEOLOGICAL FORMATIONS. 287 out the open plain. They are uU in the form of a crescent, the horns turning to the south under the influence of the north wind. H ' ' Oeolooical Formations. Nearly all the sandstone rocks and dunes are destitute of vegetation ; hut few shruhs are found on the slopes of the crystalline mountains, which are emhellished by these verdant thickets. Hitherto no fossils of animals have been discovered in the sands of the desert of Eorosko, but only some petrified trees, like those in the Bayuda steppe, in Egypt, and several other countries of Eastern Africa. According to Kussegger, these Nubian sandstones have been deposited since the chalk period. One of the most extraordinary products of this geological formation consists of spheroidal stones of all sizes, resembling balls, shot, and bullets. They are so thickly scattered over the soil that travellers had seriously proposed to Mohammed Ali that he should supply his artillery parks from this source. These stone bullets, similar to those found in Hungary in the mountains near Eoloszvar, are formed of concentric beds of variously coloured sands, hollow in the middle, or else filled with loose sand, and with a very hard ferruginous exterior. The cir- cumference of the stone is frequently marked by a ridge similar to that which the moulds leave on the bidlets at their point of contact. The great caravan route which traverses the Nubian desert, to the east of the Nile, from Ab(^-Hamed to Eorosko, extends over a space of about 300 miles, which comprises some of the most remarkable localities, offering examples of all the geological formations of the country. This region is specially termed atmur, a name probably of Berber origin, for in the language of the Tuaregs iemura means a " tract of country." After having ascended the trachyte-crested hills, and surmounted the granite escarpments, the caravan route winds from breach to breach between the sandstone hills, and even crosses a pla?n which, according to the Arabs, is an ancient lacustrine basin, the Bahr-bel&-m&, or " Waterless River." Nevertheless there are no indications which point to the presence of running or still waters having ever been in this place. One well only, that of Morad, yields a scanty supply of fresh water to travellers crossing the atmur. But there are regions in this desert where the sand contains abimdance of saline substances which doubtless proceed from ancient evaporated lakes. In the vicinity of the river the natives extract this salt and sell it to the caravans. The largest of the dry valleys which wind through the desert of Nubia is that of Wady-Allaki. Taking its origin in the mountains of the Etba'i, it follows a north-westerly course and falls into the Nile below Korosko ; its basin is more than 10,000 square miles in extent. It has occasionally happened that the "Wady-Allaki, suddenly filled by heavy showers, has for some hours suddenly become a powerful affluent of the Nile, the force of its current completely barring the main-stream. But the valley of the wady and the tributary gorges are nearly always dry ; nevertheless, the concealed moisture is revealed by the trees, under which the Bisharin tribes are accustomed to encamp. a bwi HI n iW i W P I < ^ m * w f i :) i H .i r-jij ii iyiiiilf'' I ^l^i^ lj l^ LUsDEeassac 288 NOETH-EAST AFRICA. Tub Bayuda Steppb. To the west of the Nile, whose long silver band, skirted with fl^reen, stretches in two great curves across Nubia, rise mountains similar in formation to those of the east — primitive rocks, sandstone oli£Fs, and volcanic lavas and scorise. The Fig. 93.— Batvda Stippb. Seal* 1 : 8.400.000. 33* E . of Grtenwich .aouoM. highest groups of summits, Jebel-Magaga, Jebel-Gekdul, and Jebel-Gilif, occupy precisely the centre of the immense circuit, three-fourths of which are described by the course of the Nile between the Sixth Cataract and Dabbeh. Their peaks are said to attain a height of from 3,330 to 3,660 feet. The whole of the space r^s^s_. i n i pW fO- w II. i-im i .'WJi ll THE BAYUDA STEPPE. 28» oen, stretches 1 to those of scorisB. The ) J6' enwlth I ( [-Gilif, occupy I are descrihed Their peaks ' e of the space commanded by these heights is a mountainous country covered with hollows, or a few groves of green mimosas during the rainy season, and bounded to the west between Khartum and Ambukol by the depression of the Wady Mokattara, or the " VuUey of Inscriptions," into which probably flowed an ancient arm of the Nile, The whole region, though much less barren than the atmur of Eastern Nubia, is termed the steppe or desert of Bayuda. Gekdul and Magaga, whose highest point, Ussub-Oramaneh, is a cupola of red porphyry, or erupted masses, around which the sandstone rocks, probably liquefied by the outpourings of lava, have spread over the sands in sheets of siliceous scorisD. According to Russegger, it is owing to the eruption of these ancient volcanoes that the Nile, formerly flowing to the west, was compelled to turn eastwards in order to effect its great bend of over 480 miles. In the western part of the steppe the ferruginous sands of the moun- tains, washed down by the rains, have covered the soil in thick layers. Here and there the sand has collected in the hollows where the wadies have deposited their alluvia ; the surface of the plain is thus streaked with long bands of diverse colours of the strangest appearance. The Jebel-Simrieh, formed of pink sandstone, and other hills to the west of the depression of the " Valley of Inscriptions," are less elevated than Magaga, and like it are not very long ; the valley of the "Wady-Melek, whose bed, during the floods, gives passage to the waters of Dar-F6r, bounds these mountains on the west. On the banks of the Nile itself, in the space comprised between Marawi and New Dongola, there are nothing but sandstone clifis, the crystalline rocks reappearing only at the Third Cataract. Here the heights on the left bank form part of the chains which rise in Eastern Nubia ; to the west they soon become lost under the sands, being succeeded by oases at a short distance from the river and parallel with it. In this respect the western zone of the Nubian region forms a complete contrast to the tracts beyond the Nile. To the north of Wady-Halfa, and nearly opposite the colossi of Ibsambul, lies a deep valley overlooked by the black or reddish walls of ancient volcanoes. This is the "Wady-Jehenna, or " Valley of Gehenna," a terrible region which the Arabs shun as if it were still burning. In Western as well as in Eastern Nubia, the sandstones rapidly crumble away under the influence of the wind, rain, and heat, and change into loose sand which the aerial currents reform into dunes or taluses. In many respects the sands of Africa recall the snows of the great Alps ; like the snowfiolds they collect in the depressions and crevasses of the rocks, glide over the ravines in avalanches, crown the needle-like points of the peaks, and here and there project over the precipices, forming narrow strips which give way at the slightest shock. Between the dunes and the populations of the oases on the edge of the desert the struggle is incessant ; the sands, borne forward by the winds, siirround the trees, cover up cultivations, block up the fountains, and encroach upon the inhabitable domain. But on his side the peasant utilises the sand by mixing it with his soil. The extent of ground he can render productive depends entirely upon the quantity of water at his disposal. 19— AF. '^m^m^^^- NORTH-KAHT AFRICA. Climatk. Nubia is divided into two clitnatio zonos, whose limits, chanp^ini^ yearly, are definwl by tho struggle between the northern und southern winds. In summer, when the solur rays full vertically on the soil between the equator und the northern tropic, the southern winds follow the sun i^to the northern hemisphere, carrying the rain-clouds with them ; but they scorcely evd in summer, gion is a great )f the interior, ind pasturages ids, the eye of or any trailing drought is so mouth of the gorges, whore the cliffs spring directly from the river bed. Hut however narrow and exposed this river valley may he, iU app<)urunco is none the less charming to travellers coming from the arid desert, where the only fluid obtainable is the brock i'<]i water of the wells, and where the horizon Ih iMxiiidcd by the etemol rocks and sands. On approaching the river the ArabH perceive its vicinity by the moistness of the air, and they press forward with joyful cries of " Allah be praised ! we feel the Nile ! " The Nubian desert is one of tho'w whose temperature varies the greatest between the heat of the day and the cold of the night. Although these regions are troversed by isothermal lines of 79° F. and 81° F., and although the thermo- meter frequently exceeds 104° F., nevertheless travellers often shiver with the cold beforo sunrise. The cause of this is the excessive dryness of the atmosphere, which causes the heat to radiate into space during the night; the north wind, which blows nearly constantly, also contributes to this fall of temperature after sunset. The moisture of the air is so slight that it rarely ever falls in dew on the Nubian deserts. The bodies of animals which have died on the journey dry .up without becoming decomposed, the flesh gradually crumbling into dust bencuth the hard and extended skin without emitting the least odour. Although the bodies of those who die during the journey are scarcely covered with u few inches of sand, they would easily pass unnoticed were it not for an upright stone placed over them by some pious hand. The purity of the dry desert air explains its perfect healthiness, not only for the native Nubian but also for the foreigner. No sana- torium could be preferred to an encampment far from the exhalations of the moist plain, at least by those who, like the Arabs, are cai-eful to clothe them- selves in such a way as to be unaffected by the abrupt changes in the temperatui'^ of night and day. The Egyptian plague has never penetrated into Nubia, and ophthalmia, so dreaded in the regions of the lower Nile, is unknown above the cataracts of Wady-Halfa, in spite of the glare reflected from the polished rocks and the glittering surface of the river. But in the Nubian regions where the inundations of the Nile stretch far into the plains, leaving stagnant pools here and there, malignant fevers are very common and frequently terminate fatally. The majority of the natives do not draw their drinking water directly from the river, but sink wells some distance off into which the water filters through the sand, and they leave it exposed to the sun for some time before using it. They are also careful not to follow the example of the Turks, and build their towns on the river bank ; their villages stand on the steppe or on the edge of the desert, beyond the zone of the marsh fevers. Buthern part of is a district of whilst all the populous Nile I this valley is »gefher at the Flora. A land of transition in its climate. Nubia also presents transitional forms in its fauna and flora. The baobab is uo longer found in the plains to the north of Kordof&n and the advanced Abyssinian ranges. The deleb-palm, which predomi- nates in the region of the two Niles, is no longer met with north of the confluence ; the southern variety of palm which is the true ddm-palm, advances farther towards Ml NUUT11-KA8T AFRICA. Kgypt, hut it Hourooly ever excooda the limit of the Huakin-Uerber route; north oi thin point it no longer grown Rpontanoously. The urgun, grovea of which are found iit M)iao hoUowH in thu Koroiiko desert, and which the majority of travellers t..ll dUm, is another kind of hyphtone resembling the dftra, however, by the ohururt fistic bifurcation of its brunches. The peculiar taste of its fruit might procure for it the name of the gingorbreud-troo. KlHowhore the date, which is the characteristic plant of Northern Xubia, supplying the people with food, shelter, hurdles, boskets, seats, and coarse gar- raents, is becoming scarce in Southern Nubia, the last specimens being in the gardens of Khartum. Sycamores are still found in the streets of Dongola, their evergpreon foliage contrasting with the grey walls, but they are gradually dis* appearing towards the south. Far from the river, the prevailing trees are acacias and mimosas of various species. A tree called ochaa yields a quantity of fruit covered with silky down very brilliant and perfectly white ; according to Oluny fine fabrics are woven from its fibre mixed with wool. The fruit-trees of the Mediterranean zone, such as vines, oranges, and citrons, are cultivated only in the gardens, their fruit being sour and tasteless, and generally rotting before maturity. The cereals cultivated in Nubia, either on the banks of the Nile or else in the " Valley of Inscriptions," and in the steppes of the interior, belong to the same species as those of £gypt. Fauna. The wild fauna of Southern Nubia does not differ from that of Eordolln and the slope of the Abyssinian mountains. Lions, leopards, hyesnas, antelopes, and gazelles, giraffes and ostriches, inhabit the mimosa forests on the banks of the White Nile and the Bayuda steppe ; monkeys descend the Nile as far as Berber, but neither the elephant nor the rhinoceros pass beyond the forest regions on the middle Atbara. Tne last hippopotamus that has been seen towards the north was killed in the Hannek cataracts about the middle of the century, although ancient pictures represent it as inhabiting the stream below Syene. Millions of aquatic birds swarm in the islets and on the banks of the Nile. Russegger has followed in the fresh mud deposited by the waters of the. Nile the traces of an animal whose footsteps resemble those of the quadrumana, and which were directed from the water towards the shore ; but he did not see the animal itself, the amanit, about which the Nubians tell strange stories. The termites, still so much dreaded at Dongola, are not found farther north than the twentieth degree of north latitude. The Nubians possess only one kind of domestic animal, the horse, which is tall and endowed with special qualities. Evidently of Arab origin, like those of the Eababish race bred in the neighbouring oases, these coursers, with erect heads and thin legs white up to the knees, possess none of the beauty of their ancestors, but they are astonishingly nimble and fiery ; they are fed on milk and durrah, and oocasionally on dates. The gallop is their usual gait ; they roam throughout the TNlUniTANTS. 808 route ; north of which are of travellera i^ovor, by the 8 fruit might whole region, oven in the mud of the Nile and on the rocky nlopon of the moun- tainn. liut they cannot ntund a change of climate ; they die out of Nubia, and even in the country itaolf have been greatly diniiniiihed ninco they have l)ccn ho much nought after by the Egyptian officers. The cameU of the RiNharinH and Ababdeha are no leu famous for their speed than the horses of DongoUt. rthern Nubia, id coarse gar- being in the Jongola, their p*adually dis- ues are aoaoias mtity of fruit ling to Oluny t-trees of the ed only in the ifore maturity, or else in the to the same Eordof&n and antelopes, and > banks of the far as Berber, regions on the the north was hough ancient B of the Nile, f the Nile the ma, and which see the animal B termites, still rentieth deg^ree 3, which is tall :e those of the greet heads and : ancestors, but id durrah, and ihroughout the Inhahitants. Often conquered, and consisting of little more than the di^uble riverain zone of the Nile, Nubia is peopled with tribes of very mixed origin, such as Ilamites, Arabs, Nigritians, and Turks. Nevertheless the basis of the Nubian population may be said to consist of Bar&braa, who call themselves " the people of the soil." Some authors have consideted this term Bar&bra synonymous with that of Ber- beri, applied to the Tuaregs and to the Kabyles of the Sahara and Mauritania, who are related by their speech to the people of Siwah, an oasis bordering on Egypt. But so great is the difference of colour, type, and mental qualities of these populations, that it would be difficult to believe them related, without going back to times far anterior to recorded history. According to a general but probably groundless opinion, the term Berberi, Bar&bra, corrupted to Berberins or Barbarins in the lan^^ge of the Franks living at Cairo, is merely the Greek or Latin word "barbarian" applied to the black populations who live above the cataracts beyond civilised Egypt. The principal Nigritian tribes, mentioned over forty centuries ago on the pillars of the temples as having dwelt on ihe spot whore the present Bar&bras now live, are designated by the name of Uauu, a term which seems to convey a species of contempt. It is just such a word as would bb applied to a nation of " yelpers," a name differing little from that of " stammerers," which for the Greeks had the primitive meaning of the term " barbarians." But since the name of Beraberata has been discovered on the Theban lists of tribes, it is hardly to be doubted that the term " Bar&bra " is derived from it. ' But however this may- be, the Uaua Negroes, as well as the Beraberata, have become the Barftbras of our days, but not witLuut diverse crossings with different populations. From the twelfth to the twentieth dynasty the whole of the Nile Valley, colonised by the Egyptians, had become a Betu land in language and race. The reactionary movement scarcely commenced before the Persian epoch, but it was not till the Roman period that the native elements again took the upper hand. During the government of Diocletian the Blemmyes, the present Bejas, and more especially the Bisharins, invaded the region of Nubia and settled there in a compact body. It was found necessary to withdraw the Roman garrisons, and in order to replace them an appeal had to be '.nade to the warlike .tribes called the NubotsB, who were very probably of the same stock as the Nubas of Eordof&n. From these people the Uauas and Blemmyes have received the dialects which still exist, though greatly corrupted by Arab terms. ,; iv,.^' .- ■.•:'sn^?;,iMrv;*':»it«t'rx--.i'i'-K)*'i/Ki*i' »\-.^v^'Vp/yw-:/'\v^.^"'(^'.w//>.u«^v.i3^?at;iWiiPl'^ P!||( ill I 294 NOETH-EAST AFRICA. The Nubians Proper. ■'^ ;vj: The Barbarins are amongst the darkest of the African tribes. Their com- plexion varies from the colour of Florentine bronze to an almost bluish-black ; but under their dark skins are transparent reddish hues, by which they are clearly distinguished from the Central African Negroes. The head is dolichocephalous, and the receding forehead is covered with hair which, without being woolly like that of the Negro, is nevertheless very wavy. Like the Nigritians they have a scanty beard, but their features are much more regular; and BarHbras are frequently met with who come up to the standard of European beauty. The nose is straight and firm, with broad nostrils ; the lips, clearly cut, are rarely thick or pouting ; the teeth are small and beautifully white ; the cheekbones are slightly prominent, and their regular ieatures are set off by large, open, lustrous eyes. The Bar^bras are of middle height and well proportioned ; the chest is shapely and broad, the forearms and calves are somewhat slight, but less so than amongst the Bedouin nomads. Like the Funj and Bejaa, they have the custom of making three oblique scars on each cheek, for which they can give no reason, as it does not serve to distinguish them from other peoples of Negro or Beja race. Under the pretence of working medical cures, the Bar&bras also disfigure their handsome bodies with wounds. Directly they experience any local pain or mere uneasiness, the barber cuts a gash in them, and draws off the blood which escapes from the wound through a cow's horn ; but to prevent the wound from haling too quickly it is kept open by irritating powders. At other times nails are made red-hot and thrust into the flesh by the head or point, according to the gravity of the disease. ! , The usual dress of the Nubians consists of a tunic, over which they wear a long blue cotton robe like that of the Egyptian fellahin. The dress is completed by sandals and a felt skull-cap, for which some substitute the turban. Weapons are forbidden, but there are few men who dr not carry a knife or poignard con- cealed in the left sleeve and attached by a twisted leather thong. In the southern part of Nubia the majority of the young girls, instead of tunics, still wear the rahad, or girdle of fringe ornamented with pearls, glass beads, and shells. Nearly all the northern and southern Nubian women wear a ring in one of their nostrils, and pierce the lobe of the ear, inserting pieces of white wood, awaiting the time when their husbands shall replace them by trinkets of metal. The female manner of wearing the hair is still the same as that repre- sented on the Egyptian monuments ; but when a woman dies it is quite a day's work to unravel her hair, which is saturated with grease and ochre, because their religion forbids that they should be buried with the hair dressed. Some women after having curled their hair, cover it with a thick coat of gum, which causes it to grow round the head in the shape of a polished helmet. The Nubians are laborious agriculturists. Like the Egyptians, they water the soil with the shaduf or sakieh, and sow it with durrah, dokhn, and other cereals. But the produce of their fields, restricted to a narrow zone between t'ue river and THE DANAGLAS AND KENUZI. 296 Their com- ish-black; but ley are clearly ichocephaloiis, ng woolly like IS they have a Bar&bras are ity. The nose rarely thick or es are slightly rous eyes, best is shapely than amongst ^m of making son, as it does I race. Under heir handsome ere uneasiness, ^pes from the ng too quickly I made red-hot gravity of the h they wear a 98 is completed tan. Weapons poignard con- rls, instead of I pearls, glass women wear a ting pieces of em by trinkets < as that repre- I quite a day's , because their Some women rhich causes it they water the other cereals, t'ue river and the steppe, is not sufficient to support them, and the migrating movement, which attracts so many Danaglas towards the southern countries, also yearly brings a number into the towns of Egypt to seek their fortune. Most of them become servants in the palaces and hotels of Cairo ; others, clothed merely in a wide- sleeved blue tunic, or else splendidly attired in brocade and gold, become sais, and run before the carriages of the pashas and rich Europeans. Faithful and obedient, relatively clean, nearly all knowing arithmetic, and how to read and write Arabic, they are usually preferred to servants of other races. Those who succeed in escaping diseases and accidents gradually manage to save a little, and when sufficiently rich they return to their country and purchase a plot of land, and live peacefully on their income. Egypt thus contributes to support the Nubian population, thanks to the thrift of the immigrants ; but the taxes and exactions of every kind have taken away from them much more than they ever received. Before the Egyptian conquest the people of Nubia were certainly much better off than they are at the present day ; in many places are to be seen on the rocks and river banks the picturesque ruins of houses and even villages, such as would at present be no longer built, whilst remains of abandoned agricultural tracts are found at a height to which it is not now thought necessary to bring water. In many a village the people no longer defend their dwellings, even against the termites ; when the house falls they take refuge under a hut of branches or mats. Emigration on the one hand, and on the other the passage and sojourn of officials and soldiers of all races, have naturally variously modified the primitive type, and men and women are frequently met amongst the Nubians who recall the type of the Itetus, figured on the Egyptian monvonrints. But how many of them are there who no longer possess the general character of the race, and whom servitude and misery have rendered as cowardly, timid, and effeminate as the fellahin ! But, taken collectively, the Nubians are active, cheerful, confiding ai.d gentle. But when brought into contact with the Egyptians they too often contract their drunken habits. Since their conversion, the Nubians have become much more zealous partisans of Islam than the lowland peasants of the Nile, and regularly observe the usual prayers and prostrations. Nor are they incapable of a higher state of civili6t;tion, as is proved by the many Nubians who have had the opportunity of studying in Cairo or even in Europe, and as was shown in the past by the existence of the ancient pagan realm of Meroe, which was succeeded by the Christian states of Dongola and Aloa. The name of kir&g4, derived from the Greek kyriaki, that is to say " Day of the Lord," which they still use to designate the Sunday, is a reminiscence of their now-extinct Christianity. The Danaglas and Kenuzi. The Bar&bras, who are more especially termed Danaglas or Danaglehs, that is " People of Dongola," live in southern Nubia, principally round the capital and in the islands of the river. They differ from the northern Barbarius by their love il 296 NORTH-EAST AFEIOA. of trade ; from Khartum in Kordof&n to Darfur they are grouped together in numerous colonies. They also hire themselves out as mercenaries, and in this capacity they were formerly largely employed to make raids into the zeriba region to procure slaves for the dealers. The dialect of the Danaglas differs little from that of the northern Bar&bras ; but it is much more corrupted by Arabic words, thanks to their commercial relations with this people. The complexion of the Mahas, who occupy both banks of the Nile about the region of the Third Cataract, is darker than that of the Danaglas, and they are usually more boastful, haughty and morose in character ; they look upon themselves .as a distinct race. The Elenuzi, the Kens of the ancient inscriptions, inhabit a valley farther north, between Eorosko and the First Cataract. ru i.f ■sip'^f'-^./im' iiii- ; ^-, ,•,,-.< f .,. ^-^ The pastoral peoples, who enclose the Nubian peasants on both sides of their narrow Nilotic valley, all call themselves Arabs, wht»t8oever their origin may be. Their language is that of the Prophet, which becomes yearly more universally spoken. The name they apply to the Nubians, in its true sense recalling the ancient term of " barbariai:;^," is said to signify " embarrasred, constrained, speaking with difficulty." These pastoral peoples nowhere intermingle with the Nubian peasantry ; they have their own villages, feast-days, and national diess, and nearly all of them go bareheaded. , ' ^ The BisHARiN. The most charactoiistic representatives of these Nubian " Arabs," and of those constituting the most numerous group of tribes, are the Bisharin, who are pre- eminently Bejas, and whose name, slightly modified, may probably be that of the whole race. These Bejas are usually estimated at 200,000 persons. The Bisharin rarely attain a great height, but they are extremely shrewd, and although thin and sinewy, are well proportioned. Their complexion difFers greatly from that of the Nigritian peoples, and excepting in those families that have been modified by crossings, does not present any blackish tinge. Their colour is more of a red, like that of the American Indian, and amongst the women, who are under cover of the tent, differs little from that of the Calabrian and Sicilian peasant-women. The youths are so slender and graceful in form that they might easily be taken for young girls. ' During their prime the features of the Bisharin are regular and slightly ang^ar ; the nobo is straight and shapely ; the skin, always healthy and clean^ appears as if stretched over their hollow cheeks, and on smiling, a glimpse is obtained of their pure ivory teeth, whitened by the continual mastication of the bark of the arak, an evergreen tree found in abundance near Dougolu. They never smoke. Old age comes upon them rapidly, fatigue, mI;;ory, hunger and thirst quickly changing their appearance. The eye is bright but half shut, which is caused by their custom cf haK closing the lid to evade the blinding light reflected from the sands. THE ABABDEH OP NUBIA. 297 !d together in 3, and in this I zeriba region lem Bar&bras ; »ir commercial ipy both banks a that ol the in character; Kens of the » and the First sides of their origin may be. tre imiversally recalling the L, constrained, ingle with the Lonal diess, and rr This ocular peculiarity gives them a somewhat ferocious appearance, and many of them might certainly be accused of cruelty. They are often spoken of by travellers as men without pity or honour, and avarice is tb nr ruling passion. Cheerful, inquisitive, and garrulous, they converse with animation. While few of them are of a religious temperament, they have nevertheless preserved a few practices of an origin auterior to Islam ; they never kill the serpent or the par- tridge, which latter they look upon as a sacred bird. From the linguistic and geographical standpoint, the Bisharin form a connect- ing link between the Hamitic populations and the Egyptians. The demotic and hieroglyphic inscriptions of Meroe are supposed to be written in their ancient dialect. Property amongst the Bisharin is not personal, but common to all, being divided amongst the families or tribes. Some parts of the steppes are, moreover, considered common property, all the tribes having the right to graze their herds on these tracts. The great courage of the Bisharin is made manifest in the rules regulating their duels. Each man in turn seizes a knife, which he thrusts into his adversary's body, taking care not to wound him mortally ; the elders act as umpires, praising or blaming the attitude of the combatants, ai. i separate them when honour seems to be satisfied. Amongst some of the tribes adultery is considered a very minor fault ; the nobility of the race is transmitted by the women. The Ababdeh of Nubia. :A-.n,: " and of those who are pre- be that of the The Bisharin lough thin and om that of the Q modified by B o£ a red, like er cover of the •women. The y be taken for r and slightly [thy and clean^ r, a glimpse is tication of the angola. They •y, hunger and alf shut, which blinding light The Ababdeh, " Arabs " of African origin, probably the Gebad^i of Pliny, are said to have numbered 40,000 at the period of Russegger's voyage in this coimtry. But they appear to have diminished greatly, having doubtless amalgamated with the Bisharins, whose hereditary enemies they were at the time when they con- stituted a powerful nation. Their principal tribes are encamped in Nubia, the others overrunning the region of plateaux and ravines comprised between the Nile and the Bed Sea; a^ far as to the north of Kosseir. The Ababdehs call themselves " Sons of the Jinns," as if to point out that they are aborig^es bom in the desert. They somewhat resemble the Bisharin ; but their features are more delicate, their movements more graceful, and their disposi- tion milder. The northern Ababdeh speak Arabic intermingled with Bar^bra words, those of the south have retained their Beja dialect, whilst the predominating language amongst those in the vicinity of the Nile is said to be that of the Bar- barins. Elunzinger has ascertained that the Ababdehs of Eosseir refuse to speak their national tongue before strangers, as they think that to reveal their mysterious dialect would bring ruin upon them. Evil would also fall amongst their family if a girl were to set eyes on her mother after her marriage. Hence, as amongst the Bantus of southern Africa, the Ababdeh husband is expected to select for his resi- dence some distant place where he is never likely to meet his dreaded mother-in- law. Unlike the Arab, he does not live under the tent, but builds a hut with hurdles and mats, which he pulls down and transports on camels, when it is necessary to .:.-*:.-Li^ii.*ii/';."^--:.'-!:ri'>^.S''lii;il*.-^.f;A 298 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. seek fresh pastures. The Ababdeh likewise dwell in grottoes, similar to those of their ancestors the Troglodytes. If the clay of these caverns were explored, it woidd undoubtedly yield a rich harvest of prehibtoric objects. Gums, a few other simple products, and fish, in the vicinity of the Red Sea, are the only means of exchange by which the Ababdeh procure the durrah required for their frugal diet. Most travellers speak highly of their honesty, gentleness, and frankness, and however miserable they may be, they never beg like the fellahin. if Other Ethnical Elements in Nubia. The powerful Eababish and Hassanieh tribes, who extend beyond their own domains, where they are too much crowded together, into Kordof&n and into the peninsiila lying between, and formed by the two Niles ; the Shukrieh, encroaching on the steppes to the north of the Atbara ; the Sawrat, the Hawins, and the Jeraiad of the Bay uda ; lastly, the Bobabat, and Shaikieh, who occupy the two banks of the Nile between Berber and Dongola, and now speak the Danagla lang^ge, complete the population of Nubia. These Arabs or peoples assimilated to the " Arabs " possibly amount to 200,000 or 300,000 persons. Immigrants from other regions have been amalgamated with the body of the Bar&bra nation, and the memory of their origin has been retained only by the aristocratic families who have taken interest in pre- serving their genealogies. Such is the case with the Bosniaks, who are descendants of the soldiers sent in 1520, on a mission to re-establish peace in the country. They caused fortresses to be built on the escarpments overlooking the river, settled there as sovereigpos of the country, and allied themselves by marriage to the ancient chiefs. At the present time these " Ealaj " of Bosnia are still the most important people of Lower Nubia, more especially between Assuan and Korosko, and to them it is that the Egyptian Government has intrusted the local administration. Topography. Below Berber, Abu-Hamed, the principal starting-point of the caravans, occupies one of those positions which in time become market-towns. A large city might even spring up in this place were both banks of the Nile not bounded by a vast desert. Here it is that the river, ceasing to flow north-westwards, trends abruptly round to the south-west, commencing the great curve which it comp' otes at a distance of 240 miles farther north. To avoid this enormous detour the merchants are compelled to leave the Nile, and journey for seven or eight days amid the rocks and sands of the desert. South of AbCl-Hamed the valley of the Nile is broadened by the large island of Mograt, which leaves to this mart fertile lands more extensive than those of most other Nubian villages. But the port where the merchants of Eorosko embark and disembark is merely a group of cabins, inhabited by -^aiuel-drivers and fishermen. Doubtless the caravan traders in this coimtry have no ir;^ of warehouses to protect Mm tsa MARAWI— BARKAL. 299 lar to those of plored, it would le Bed Sea, are •ah required for gentleness, and the fellahin. ond their own a and into the )h, encroaching, d the Jeraiad of mks of the Nile B, complete the Lrabs " possibly ^ions have been of their origin nterest in pre- Boldiers sent in [ fortresses to be 'ereigns of the At the present f Lower Nubia, b the Egyptian the caiuvans, A large city t bounded by a 5stwftrds, trends oh it comp'otes lous detour the or eight days ) large island of 1 those of most sko embark and and fishermen, ouses to protect their goods ; they deposit their bales in the sand, under the protection of the shrine consecrated to " Saint Abd-Hamed," and when they return, after an absence of months, or years, they always find their property just as they left it under the shadow of this venerated tomb. ^ ^ ;;/ Marawi — Barkal. Some ruins are found on the banks of the Nile between Ab(i-Hamed and the Fourth Cataract, but it is below these rapids that, next to those of Meroe, the most remarkable ruins of Upper Nubia are met with. Marawi, the village which at present stands in this part of the valley, is a name which seems to be derived from that of the ancient capital ; nevertheless, archaeologists, relying on the statements of authors, are certain that Marawi is the Napata of Herodotus, and the inscriptions deciphered are unanimous on this point. Marawi, situated at the foot of white rocks, occupies an important geographical situation, being the place where navigation recommences below the Fourth Cataract, and the converging point of the two routes from Berber and Shendi, across the Bayuda steppe. The Wady-Dum, one of the most fertile and least dried-up valleys of this region, forms a conflilence with the Nile valley precisely opposite Marawi. Large heaps of rubbish mark the site of the destroyed monuments, and, not far above, the remains of great buildings are still to be seen at the base of the superb Mount Barkal, an enormous quadrangular sandstone mass, poised in the middle of th' plain like a pedestal awaiting its statue. The hieroglyphic name of Barkal was '" Holy Mountain," and its principal temple was dedicated to the glory of Ammon-Ba. Of this building but few ruins remain, sufficient, however, to leave no doubt as to the Egyptian origin of the monument attributed to Bamses the Great. Nevertheless, the name of Amenemha III. is also found on the granite rams and lions of natural size. In 1863, Mariette discovered amongst the monimients of Barkal five columns of the highest importance, proving that Ethiopia had a very important position among the Egyptian dynasties. For a period of fifty-one years, three Ethiopian kings, residing in Nubia, ruled over the greater part of Egypt. One of these conquerors, Tahraka by name, carried his expeditions even into Asia. The European museums possess several of these monuments from Mount Barkal. Groups of pyramids are found near the temple. But the most remarkable structures of this description are those which, to the number of twenty-five, stand on the left bank of the Nile, near the village of Nttri. These latter, larger than the pyramids of Meroe, are not so well preserved, owing to the less durable qualities of the sandstone, and nearly all have lost their exterior coating of polished stones. In the interior are found vaults, a method of support which was tiU recently believed to be an Etruscan invention, but which, nevertheless, occurs in various Oriental countries, notably at Saqqarah in the tombs of the sixth dynasty. In the wady of Ab{i-Dum, soiith of Nuri, atfi seen the ruins of a fine church and of a convent in the Byzantine style ; but nowhere, on the left bank of the river, are to be found the traces of such an important town as Nafata must have been, which stood on the northern bonk. The whole of this country formerly possessed i i>^Ali\.tt^afA^j.A V 800 NORTH-EAST AFBICA. a large population. The numerous ruins found beyond the g^up of buildings of which Marawi is iliu centre, belong to diverse historical epochs ; they consist of pyramids, dating from the period of the Byzantine influences, and fortresses constructed after the triumphs of Islam. Old and New Donoola. The head of the curve which the Nile describes before resuming its northern course, like that of Abil-Hamed, could not fail to become a rendezvous for merchants. But the deviation of the river is here much more extensive, and the caravans have had the choice of several sites for their stations of arrival and departure. Thus follow in succession on the left bank of the river, going north* wards, the trading stations of Korti, Ambukol, Abii-D&m (Abdum), Dabbeh, and Ahu'Omai, where terminates the route to Khartum through the Wady-Mokattam. Dabbeh was the station chosen by the British expedition of 1884 as the centre of their supplies. Abli-Gossi has been fixed by the (engineers as the point where the Nile railway will enter on the desert along the valley of the Wady-Melek ; at the Sotahl wells the line will branch o£P on one side towards Khartum, and on the other towards Darfur. Dongola-el'Ajusa, or Old Dongola, which is believed to have existed under the name of Deng-ur at the period of the ancient Egyptian Empire, was till recently the most important town of the country. It stands farther down o;ii a sandstone rock which commands the iight bank of the river from a height of about one hun- dred feet. Here was discovered a column which has since been placed in the Berlin museum. Dongola was the capital of a Christian realm which lasted for eight hundred years, down to the fourteenth century. It was still populous at the time when the Mameluks, flying from the wrath of Mohanuned-Ali, settled doMm in the country in the character of devastators, the Turks, who followed close on their heels, completing the work of destruction. The islands which follow in succession between the arms of the Nile, from Old to New Dongola, are mostly cultivated, and present a charming appearance, with their borders of palms reflected in the flowing stream. Naft, one of these islands, is the birthplace of the Mahdi, Mohammed Ahmed. Dongola-el-Jedidehy or New Dongola, the present capital of Nubia, is also known by the names of Ka&r Dongola (Castle of Dongola), and Al'Ordu{i)xQ Camp), in reference to the fact that it really sprang from a camp which the Mameluks pitched near the village of Marakah. It lies over a mile west of the great arm of the Nile, on the bank of a canal which at high tide serves r.s a port, but which at low water becomes a mere stagnant pool emitting dangerous miasmas. Consisting of low houses with courts, outhouses, and gardens, Dongola o .jserre the incessant work of MMJ I J il WIi f HW i ) tf i l, | i I ^jM I ll l l l li il i 111 i m V ^ m 802 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. destruction carried on by the termite, an insect unknown to the riverain peoples of the Lower Nile, and which compel the people to be continually engaged in repairing their dwellings. Before the war, which for several months caused Dongola to be one of the most important bulwarks of the Egyptian Empire, this town enjoyed a fair amount of commerce ; and its port was often crowded with craft scarcely inferior in size to the dahabiyeh, but carrying a square instead of the lateen sail used below the cataracts. Below Dongola the course of the Nile is divided by Argo, one of the largest islands of Nubia and one of the most beautiful, thanks to its wooded hills, cultivated fields, villages hidden beneath the foliage, and its sakieh or waterwheels, which the oxen turn slowly beneath the shade of the sycamores. Thousands of years ago Argo was one of the centres of Egyptian civilisation in the Nubian regions ; here was settled, at the period of the third dynasty, a powerful colony of Egyptians. On this island have been discovered huge ruins dating from this epoch, notably two quadrangular masses or tombs, a magnificent colossus of Sookhotpu lY. and remains of sculptures of the most exquisite style and partially engraved with hiero- glyphics. Two unfinished columns of g^ey granite lying upon the ground have been probably overthrown by some conquering people before being able to witness to the glory of the sovereign who had caused them to be erected by his enslaved subjects. At the period of the conquest of the country by the Turks Argo consti- tuted a distinct kingdom. ■ J- f The Wady-Kab and Selimeh Oases. To the west of Dongola lies the Wady-Kab, a chain of twelve oases running northwards, and following the Nile at a short distance from it. According to Russegger it should be regarded as an ancient arm of the Nile, continuing that occupied by the present depression of Wady-Mokattam. Bounded right and left by low eminences disposed like the cliifs along a watercourse, the £ab undoubtedly resembles a river-bed, and passes into the Nile valley above the cataract of Hannek. It is supposed to lie at a lower level than that of the present Nile ; but the numerous sources and sheets of water contained in the wady might be accounted for by the infiltration of water from the river. The pasturages, brush- wood, and groves of dates and other trees make of this depression a chain of oases which coidd support a numerous population, yet it is only periodically visited by Kababish nomads, who come to graze their herds and to procure dates, and the wood which they sell at Dongola for the construction of the hoiuies and sukiehs. Still farther north are other oases, but of much less extent. That of Selimeh, which lies on the caravan route between Assuan and Darfur, had no fixed popula- tion at a recent period, although its springs, sheltered by groves of palms, are filled with good water. At the period of Browne's expedition, towards the end of the last century, it is said to have had nothing but pasturages ; but in the year 1822 Cailliaud here found tamarisks and some himdreds of palms, which had probably ■gjJ^tS'i.' ■^"•»i""Wt~'»»»W»"t?"iWT»mpipP erain peoples of ged in repairing 1 Dongola to be town enjoyed a scarcely inferior I sail used below le of the largest hills, cultivated heels, which the Is of years ago , ,n regions ; here f of Egyptians. a epoch, notably khotpu lY. and ived with hiero- be ground have able to witness by his enslaved ■ks Argo consti- 3 oases running According to Dontinuing that d right and left [ab undoubtedly the cataract of esent Nile ; but 'ady might be Jturages, brush- i chain of oases odically visited •cure dates, and die houses and liatof Selimeh, lO fixed popula- palms, are filled the end of the 1 the year 1822 h had probably SOLEB— AMARAH— SEMNEH— EMKA. 808 been but recently planted. At one time the English appear to have entertained the project of constructing a fort, and maintaining a permanent garrison in the Selimoh oasis for the purpobe of commanding the route to Darfur, and overawing the neighbouring peoples in the Nile valley. ■'■ H'. SoLEB — Amarah. The usual route by river to the Selimeh oasis starts from the village of Solel, below the Third Cataract. The houses of the village are overtopped by the rains of a temple, one of the finest and largest specimens of ancient Egyptian workman- ship to be found in Nubia. The columns which still stand are as elegant as those of Greek temples ; but the sculptures and inscriptions in honour of Amenemha III. are not numerous, and the interior is a mere chaos of rubbish. Lower down on the right bank of the river stand the sculptured pillars of the temple of Amarah, surroundied by palm groves, whose fruit is the most highly valued throughout tlie whole of Nubia. Here begins that region of gorges and rapids which the Arabs call " Botn-el-Hagar." Although the cliffs on both sides almost meet here and there, the banks of the river are everywhere cultivated. When ♦he strip of alluvia is only a few yards broad, it is usually sown with haricots or lentils ; but when the arable zone is not so narrow it is used for raising crops of durrah ; and if still more extensive it bears a few palms, under which nestle small groups of huts. The crests of the neighbouring rocks are crowned by the towers of strongholds and the walls of ancient entrenched camps. The remains of a feudal system similar to that of Europe, the Nubian castles differ little from those of the Rhine, except that the battlements and keeps are built in red brick, whilst the roofs, slightly inclined, are broader at the base than at the summit, and all the towers are conical. One of the thermal springs which rise in these gorges on the banks of the Nile, is much frequented by the sick persons of the surrounding country, but only during the season of low water, as at other periods the beach is covered by the floods. The sands give birth to several springs, many of which are probably rivulets which filtered through from the Nile during the floods, and are now returning to the main stream: , Semneh — Emka. . At Semneh, one of the few villages situated in the Botn-el-Hagar, two cliffs on the banks of the Nile each bear an Egyptian fortress of the twelfth dynasty. At the period of the inundations the broad bed of the Nile is entirely flooded ; but at low water nearly the whole of the space comprised between the two cliffs is occupied by shining black granite rocks, pierced with holes and intersected by deep crevasses. It is now merely a narrow channel about 100 feet broad, through which rushes a foaming body of water at the rate of several hundred cubic feet per second. In no other part of its course does the Nile present a more magnificent appearance. . . 't1 ;,1 ■i 4 8U4 N0BTII-BA8T AFRICA. ki ' M P i It .. Semneh ia the wcll-knowti placo where Lepsiua dinoovered numerous inscrip- tions carved in the rock, iiulicuting the height of the Nilotic floods during the reign of Amenemha III., and showing how considerably the water-mark has been changed during forty centuries. Hut even at a level much higher than that reached by the floods in the time of the I'haraohs, labyrinths of polished rocks are seen absolutely similar to those now washed by the present waters of the river. Opposite the village of Emka, the rock is more deeply scored with a horizontal lino, which M. Pouchot believes to be the primitive level of the Nile floods. Not far from this spot lies Wady-Sarras, the present (1885) terminus of the railway which skirts the cataract. ■:\M\{ Wady - Half4. Wady- Haifa, or the " Volley of Reeds," is situated on the right bonk of the Nile, over o mile below the last rapid of the Second Cotaract. A fc- fields and a belt of palms growing in the sand surround the huts of this vil' which has become of great military and commercial importance as a st . where the caravans unload and reform. Moreover, Wady- Haifa, as the capital of the frontier district, now enjoys an extensive administrative jurisdiction, the ofliciol boundary of Egypt and Nubia having been transferred from the First to the Second Cataract. During the campaign of 1884-5, the English here established their principal provisioning depot in Nubia, and since 1875 the Egjrptians have made it the terminus of the railway which skirts the Cataracts, and which may idtimately be pushed on to Dongola. A bridge will have to be raised at Koyeh, near Soleb, below the Third Cataract, so as to open up a route to the capital of Nubia across the western desert. In order to aurmount the rapids of Wady-Halfa, the English employed boats of a special make, the guidance of which was intrusted to Canadian and Iroquois boatmen, accustomed from their youth to sail down the rapids of the Canadian rivers. May not the presence of these Iroquois boatmen on the Cataracts of the Nile be taken as a striking proof of how greatly the size of the world has been reduced by steam ? l.-|! M Derr — EoRosKo — Ibsambul. Till recently the population of Wady-Halfa was much Hmaller than that of Derr, a village situated on the right bank of the river, its houses scattered amidst groves of palms, in the most fertile part of Nubia, known by the name of Boston, or " the garden." The traffic of Wady-Halfa was also less important than that of the station of Eorosko, situO' ed on the right bank, at the northern extremity of the caravan route which avoids tiie great curve of the Nubian Nile. Between Wady-Halfa and Derr the river flows by the foot of two temples which take their place amongst the marvels of Egyptian art ; they are the monuments of Ibsambul, more com- -^wiS -WF rtr^'^m^t^mfm •ym^m^ifmm merouH inscrip- odfl during the •mark has been gher than that polished rocka waters of the scored with a )vel of the Nile (5) terminus of ht bank of the fe^<^ fields and a I' which has .. where the capital of the tion, the official st to the Second stablished their ,ns have made it may ultimately Third Cataract, )m desert. In oyed boats of a a and Iroquois the Canadian Cataracts of the world has been DERBr-KOROSKO - 1 nSAM m T L. monly known by the orronoous noino of Abu-Siml)ol. Thoy are b«»f.h howii out of the rod furruginouH HiuulHtone comimHJng the mountainH which hhu on the hift ])ank of the rivor. IJntwoen the two nniks gunhos forth u cutaruot of yellow sand, borne thilher by the wind from the Libyan d*^ . nd forming an ovor-iin'rcaMing mound before each temple, which, on varion-i vocosic > i, it has been found uecessaiy to clear away from the entrances and staVK VI. - -», • • • t The southern or great temple, built in honour of Ammon-Ra, the nun-god, is cntiri'ly hewn out of the living rock. Before the gate sit four colossi, over 60 FJr. 04.— Tmr TcMi-La or Ahu-Simmki,, in Nuhm. " id ,tJMi|»j:|^ ^H|^^B|^ .'''"'§ M t) X B^^^^^HHHHII P^ r' .'I ~ * "-« fv - 1 ~, ^<^ ^ ^^ ■* .¥ — ~ * i- ' ^ .M0K^^^. P U ^ ,-.'-■'■■ "'^:l^-.-^ ."'^I li&miSMkSU&ISakMB^^^^^^^^^^^^^. ,■ . ;. T .•■ »■■■ - ■-. . " 'l ' ^ M T^'T^m miP>''-' *'•( -^ I ^%-^im^^ fr^:zA^^^^^ Wi-'--i::J -:m ^^ er than that of scattered amidst name of Boston, >f the station of he caravan route rady-Halfa and ' place amongst abul, more com- feet in height, of noble and placid countenance, supposed to represent Ramses II. ; but of one of these gigantic statues, decapitated by an English traveller, the lower part is all that remains. \-, All the colossi are covered with inscriptions, Greek and Phoenician being even found in the midst of the hieroglyphics. In the interior of the rock follow in succession three large halls and twelve of a smaller size, whose walls are embel- lished with hieroglyphic paintings and sculptures, whose colours are still brilliant. One of these compositions, which comprises no less than eleven hundred figures, represents the battle of Eadesh, the prinnip tl event of the Egyptian Iliad. Nearly 20— AF. i^'«^^ NOimi-EAST AFRICA. nil the other sculpturon nlw> commctnoruto the glory of RamaeH, conqueror of the Ilittitcii. On the ceiling of one hall are carefully drawn various ■pooiot of animuU no longer met with in Nubia, but only in KordofAn and SenAr. , The Hmaller tempFe, connecrated to the goddons Iluthor, has six colossi over 80 feet in height before the fafude, and four of those huge maasos again represent Ramses II. ; two of the statues, the second and fifth, n>produco the features of Nofreuri, the " Divine Beauty," and their children are placed between the knees of the wedded pair. Maiiarrakah — Bkit-kl-Wamj. The imposing sanctu*;fi".- of Al)»-8imbol are succeeded by many other temples, which extend as far as iK First ''taract. Fourteen have been described by archoDologists, without including; vhe sepulchral grottoes, gateways, and towers. Passing beyond the temple of Sabua, almost buried in the sand, and the ruins of the ancient town of Mahendi, whose tunnel-shaped galleries are still to be seen passing under the houses, the traveller reaches the Roman ruins of Maharrakah, which crown a }>r«!aontory commanding an extensive prospect. Then come Dikkeh, with its gigantic gateways, and Oarf-ffouain, a sombre cavern hewn out o{ thu Ninentone rock, now infested by bats, like all the abandoned edifices of anaient Egypt Beyond this point are seen the ruins of Kalabahah, another su^ierb ttrnple bu i. by Ramses II., where a Greek inscription has been found recording the victories that the Nubian king, Silco, gained over the Blemmyes. Close by yawns the well-known sp^os or sepulchral cave of Be'it-el- Walli, whose sculptures, representing triumphal processions, assaults, court and battle scenes, have been rendered more popular by engravings than any others. Although somewhat tarnished by the castings taken from them, the colours of the paintings of Beit-el-Wtflli are still remarkably brilliant. The defile leading from Egypt in the direot^n of Nubia is preceded by temples and necropolises, which form, as it were, a long avenue of tombs. Cata- combs are much more numerous than populated dwelling^, and this region probably contains fewer living men tlian gods engraved on the walls of the temples or sculptured in the granite. jm luiiquoror of tho rioufi Bpooioa of unAr. HJx coloMii ovor I uguiii roproaent the features of tween tho knoea ly other tomploa, Hsn deacribed by aya, and towora. and the ruina of still to be aeen of Maharrakah, otaain, a sombre ill the abandoned as of Kalabshah, ription has been ^ined over the 1 cttve of Be'it-el- saults, cotirt and than any othera. he coloura of the is preceded by at tomba. Cata- ond this region the walls of the V IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) *i, CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHM/ICIVIH de m Canadian Instituta for Historical IMicroraproductions / inttitut Canadian da microraproductiona tiiatoriquaa ^. n »)i' ' i lH* i i(n i i I W -***-- CHAPTER XII. EGYPT. pEFOEE the form of the earth was known to be that of a globe, every nation thought that their country occupied the centre of the world, and a mere child could point out the precise spot — lake* mountain, or temple — which was supposed to be the middle of the earth. But the exploration of our planet has proved that on the oirooit of the globe, no less than in infinite space, " the centre is everywhere and the circumference nowhere." Nevertheless, if the surface of the globe is studied according to the disposition of the continents, Egypt, the Misr of the natives, more than any other region may certainly be considered as occupying the veritable centre. From a geometrical point of view, Asia Minor, Palestine, and Mesopotamia might have as much right as the plains of the Lower Nile to claim a central position in the group of the three continents of the old world. But Egypt has the advantage over them of offering an easy passage from one marine basin to the other. Here cross each other the two great diagonal lines of the world, that of the overland routes between Asia and Africa and the ocean highways between Europe and India. The very opening of the Suez Canal has placed Egypt midway between America and Australia. The ancient Egyptians were quite justified in giving their country the position of the heart in the terrestrial globe, and one of the etymological renderings of its ancient name of Memphis g^ves it the sense of " The Middle of the World." Historic Retrospect. The people who dwell on the banks of the Lower Nile played a part in history corresponding with the geographical position of the land. Egypt is the first region of which there is any record in the annals of human culture. It already existed as a civilised power conscious of its own greatness at a period antecedent to the foundation of Babylon and Nineveh, and when the whole of Europe was still overrun by savage tribes that have left no record behind them. The inhabitants of Asia Minor and Hellas, who were destined to become the teacshers of the nations succeeding them, were still cavemen and denizens of the -J! ' « -il »!I .J;l- ' V! ' "t- '' l, ' -.-l ' -" ' i l »W i I J ' i J ' K.H ' t 'i ' ti ' 808 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. h forest, armed only with clubs and sharpened flints, at a time when astronomical observations, arithmetic, geometry, architecture, all the arts and nearly all the industries of the present day, as well as the games which now delight our child- hood, or afford relaxation from the serious work of life, were already known to their Egyptian contemporaries. The origin of our sciences, and many moral pre- cepts still taught by the " wisdom of nations," are found recorded on the papyri and on the bas-reliefs of the monuments of Upper Egypt ; whilst many a dogma on which existing religions are based, may be traced in its original form to the documents discovered in the tombs of Thebes and Abydos. To Egypt we owe the art of writing, afterwards modified by the Phoenicians, by whom it was communicated to all the peoples of the Mediterranean basin. The very groove of our thoughts had its origin on the banks of the Nile. Mankind is undoubtedly ignorant of its first epochs, nor can anyone assert positively that civilisation first arose in Egypt. Nevertheless, we are unable to trace it further back than the written records of this land, whose pyramids mark for us the limit of past times. ... Egyptian Chronology. jt The Egyptians had no chronology properly so-called, their only division of time consisting of the length of reign of their successive sovereigns. But the uncertain dates obtained from the succession of the rc.:rn8 partially indicated on the buildings, and those handed down by Manetho, a pricHt under Ptolemy Phila- delphus, can be checked by a few fixed dates, such as those of astronomical pheno- mena. Biot, when examining -the hieroglyphics translated by Emmanuel de Rougd, was thus enabled to determine three dctes in the history of Egypt com- prised between the fifteenth and thirteenth centuries of the ancient era. In the series of events the Egyptian annals accordingly yield us at least one established date, seven centuries anterior to the Chaldean era of Nabonassar, which another astronomical coincidence has enabled us to place in the year 746. Chabas has also found in a " medical " papyrus in the library of Leipzig the cartouche of Menker& or Mycerinus, followed by a reference to the solar ascension of Sothis or Sirius, as having taken place in the ninth year of hi^ reign. If the interpretation of the text be correct, calculation would fix the date between the year 3,007 and 3,010 of the ancient era, or a thousand years after the epoch attributed to the reign of Menker^ in Mariette's chronological table. In any case, it is to be hoped that future discoveries will enable us with certainty to trace back the course of ages, and to determine positive dates for the origins of history, with which may be connected the fluctuating chronology of the most remote events of which the human race has preserved the memory. The same necessity which has caused the metrical system to be adopted for the measurement of terrestrial spaces, and which is now endeavouring to establish a common meridian, renders it equally indispensable that a common era should be sought, so as to establish a concordance for the events of various nations. Sooner or later, when the savants shall endeavour to get rid of the ab&urd chronological system which at present prevails in Christian Europe, ■^-■'^■'■'■C'- ■ .i But at a period of about fifty centuries anterior to the present time the people had already commenced to degenerate. As Herder remarks, can any one conceive the dire state of misery and the utter degradation into which the masses must have fallen before it became possible to employ them in erecting such tombs ? A mournful civilisation must that have been, which employed thousands of men for years in transporting a few blocks of stone I The slavery of the Egyptians, attri- buted to Joseph by the Hebrew writers, must have been effected long before that time, to enable the kings and priests to employ them on such works. The land and its inhabitants had already become the property of the Pharaohs ; under these masters the people sank to the level of a mere herd of cattle. Like the Nile, the Egyptian civilisation conceals its source in regions hitherto unknown, and, in times antecedent to King Menes, whom the annals state to be the founder of the empire, the hieroglyphics show the ffor-cheaoK, or " servants of Horus," also engaged in raising monuments in 'Egypt, according to plans traced on gazelle skins. The social state of the people inhabiting the banks of the Nile at this period is unknown ; but the most ancient buildings that they have left us,, notably the step pyramid of Saqqarah, and the temple of Armakhis near the great sphinx, assuredly prove that they already possessed a well-established civilisation. No other Egyptian statue is more lifelike or approaches nearer to the high artistic standard than that of Ehephren, although it is one of the most ancient. In the earlier times of Egyptian history, the paintings which cover the walla 810 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. of the necropolis show that the philosophy of the Egyptians was humane and rational, and, as Marictte remarks, it in no way resembled the mystical fetishism which sprang up in Thebes twenty centuries later. From all points of view the most perfect epoch is precisely the most ancient that is known to us. "When Egypt entered upon one of those periods of warlike rule which so many persons still consider the indication of true greatness, the Egyptian sovereigns were enabled to use for their conquests the effective power which their armies had already acquired during the course of a long-established culture. Their empire already extended far beyond the natural limits of the Nilotic basin, even far into Asia. According to Mariette and most other Egyptologists, the monarchy of the Pharaohs, at the time of its greatest extent, embraced the whole region comprised between the equatorial countries of the Upper Nile, the shores of the Indian Ocean, and the mountains of the Caucasus. But warlike expeditions are always the forerunning sign of decadence. Under the rule of the conquering Ramses II. the decline became rapid, and the latter part of his reign is marked by barbarous works, and sculptures " of a most extra- ordinary coarseness." The force derived from a superior civilisation ended by exhausting itself, and Egypt was conquered in her turn, and for more than twenty centuries she has never ceased io be under the rule of foreign dynasties. Present Social and Political Position. The political and social destiny of the cultivators of the Egyptian soil is clearly indicated by the surroundings amidst which they live. The Nile, the common property of the nation, floods all the land at the same time ; and before it had been surveyed by geometricians, the land itself should also have been rendered common property. The irrigating canals, which are indispensable for cultivation beyond the limits attained by the annual floods, can be dug out and kept in oi-der only by multitudes of workmen labouring in unison. There is, therefore, only one of two alternatives to be accepted by the agricul- turalists, either to unite together in a commune, or else to become the slaves of a native or foreign master. During the course of written history, the latter alterna- tive is that which has been realised, whatsoever may have been the apparent pros- perity of the country under the sway of the Pharaohs, the Ptolemies, and the Sultans. The bas-reliefs of the monuments show us the Egyptian of three thousand years ago bowed down beneath the lash, just as they are at the present day. The victim of a continual oppression, and an excessive extortion, the fellah is unable to shift his quarters like the nomad Bedouin. In the vast level plain of the delta, or in the narrow valley of the river, there is not a single retreat in which he can hope to And a refuge from his taskmasters. Although his misery is without issue and his future without hope, still he passionately loves the land of his birth. Away from the banks of his beloved river, the fellah is overwhelmed by sadness and dies of home-sickness. The most commonplace landscapes are still the most beautiful in the eyes of their inhabitants. ,.-i^-i».^-^i^-»--.p».^^ J PRESENT SOCIAL AND POLITICAL POSITION. 811 For nearly a century the conquerors of western Europe have disputed the possession of Egypt, which was even in 1672 spoken of by Leibnitz as the natural centre of the Old "World, and the key to all the colonial possessions on the shores ot the Indian Ocean. The vital importance of this commanding position could not fail to be observed by statesmen who were contending for the possession of the Indian peninsula. Had the armies of the French Republic succeeded in retaining Egypt, which they had so rapidly overrun, there would have been an end to British rule in Hindustan, and England would have lost the inheritance of the Great Mogul. But after the destruction of the French fleet in Aboukir Bay, Great Britain, resuift- ing undisputed possession of the ocean highways, again became in her turn the mistress of Egypt, without even having the trouble to conquer it, and the French were obliged to withdraw after two years of occupation. To the clash of arms succeeded diplomatic manoeuvres and incessant struggles for obtaining the upper hand at Cairo and Constantinople. At the time of the inauguration of the Suez Canal, which opened up a direct route for steamers to India, and was the work of a French engineer, France at last seemed on the verge of obtaining a kind of suzerainty over Egypt. But England, concentrating all her efforts to secure this highway to India, has finally succeeded in acquiring political possession of Egypt, just as she has secured to herself the commercial pre-eminence over the canal between the two seas. Officially, England intervenes only to advise and assist the sovereign, but in reality her envoys are not far from being the absolute masters of the land. They draw up the treaties, declare war, and cbnclude peace, distribute places and pensions, dictate the sentences to the magistrates. But they leave the authority to the Egyptian officials, when it is necessary to sanction lists of taxes or to imdertake affairs for which it does not suit them to be respon- sible. It may be said that the Nile basin, with its 40,000,000 inhabitants, has for a period, more or less extended, virtually become part of the vast British Empire. Although the English generals have scarcely any army at their disposition, mer- cenaries of all nations will be found ready to assist them in finishing the conquest of the country, in recent times commenced on behalf of the Khedive and the Sultan by Munzinger, Baker, Gordon, Gessi, Stone, Prout, and others. But the military difficulties attendant upon the annexation of this country will not be the only ones that Great Britain will have to deal with. Even should the other European powers assist England in consolidating her supremacy in Egypt, this authority would not be supported, as in most other English colonies, by the co-operation of a population of British origin. Those amongst the foreigners settled in the country who dispose of the financial resources, establish industries, conduct the papers, and guide pubUo opinion, are mostly Continental Europeans, Italians, Frenchmen, Greeks, and Austrians, whose interests and aspirations are often antagonistic to thoso of the English. These European immigrants, much better preferred by the natives to the phlegmatic Englishman, who will always be prevented by the climate from founding colonies properly so-called, form in the towns an ever-increasing community, which already numbers nearly 100,000 812 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. persons, and which will not fail to act as a check on the exercise of British power. Undoubtedly the new niastcrs possess a certain means by which they can make themselves, if not loved, at least respected by the people. For they have it in their power to restore the land to its cultivotors, to rescue them from the usurers who absorb their substance, to assure them an impartial justice, and to leave " Egypt more and more to the Egyptians." But what Government ever possessed this virtue of gradually effacing itself ? Will that of Great Britain set the example ? If the sdlemn and reiterated affirmations of the heads of the English Government are to bo believed, their only ambition is to re-establish order in the finances and government of Egypt, and then, this pious work accomplished, to withdraw, leaving their successors to follow the good example they have set. GEOnRAPHICAL EXPLORATION. - ' " ' Connected as it is with the circle of attraction of European politics, Egypt is naturally one of the best-explored countries of the African continent. At the time of the French expedition towards the end of last century, the numerous scientific men who accompanied Bonaparte, Desaix, and Elcber, thoroughly studied the land from the various standpoints of its mineralogy, geology, the history of the soil, hydrography, annals, architecture, manners and customs, and the social economy of the couhtry, and their joint labours still constitute the most considerable scientific monument which exists regarding the lower Nile valley. The general nuip, which they drew up to the scale of xjf'^vjfv ^"^ ^^^ remained in many respects the most complete that we possess, notably for Upper Egypt, or SaM. The smaller map that Linant de Bellefonds, Director of Public Works in Egypt, caused to be engraved, is another valuable document. •' ■ ^ - But, bej'^ond the salient features of the country, defined by the rocky backbone which bounds the verdant plains, the outlines of the land change yearly, and any local maps, drawn up with the greatest care during the preceding generation, would have to be nearly entirely recast. On one hand the slopes of the Nile have been eaten away by the water ; on the other, alluvial deposits have been developed, which the fellahin have already embanked and commenced to cultivate. Choked up canals have been replaced by other irrigating channels, whilst routes and villages liave changed both locality and name. The special maps, mode for the survey of the great domains, constantly assign them different outlines. On the other hand, the " Arabian " and " Libyan " deserts are atill unknown, except along the track of a few explorers, on one side between the Nile and the ports of the Bed Sea, and on the other in the direction of the oases. It is time that the country in which Eratosthenes, more than two thousand years ago, first measured an arc of the meridian, should at last possess a network of geodetic measurements with which all the local maps might be connected. But most Egyptian explorers have studied the ancient history of the people rather than their present life and the special geography of the country, When Ifau^ « id s B o go orf fl , i.rt»li> .. EXTONT AND POrULATION. 81B iK-r "• V^; ChumpolHun's diHcovory revealed the myMtery of the hiero^lyphicH no loiij^f and m» earnently Houf^ht for, und when the nuvuntM were able ut lust to decipher t)te inHcriptionH which cover in th..UHunds the wiillHund colutnnHof the inimenHe urchitecturul librury of Kgypt, thoy plunged with rupture into this hitherto almost unknown Held of inquiry. To the works of Huroilotus and of the Greek googrophorM were now iiddrd still more precious documents, the so-callod " tables," und the papyri written forty centuries ago by the Kgyptians themselves. Thanks to the investigations of Mariotte, now continued by M. Masporo, und thanks to the interpretations of Lepsius, Birch, Chabas, Emmanuel do lloug^, Diimichen, and so many other Egyptologists, the history of the ancient land of the Nile is being gradually reconstituted. The Western nations are beginning to become acquainted with the private life, the deep moral character, and us it were the very soul of this people, from whom they have inherited such a large part of their ideas. Whatever may be said to the contrary, great changes have taken place since the times represented on the oldest monuments. Doubtless the same type of face and figure may be found amongst many descendants of the Retu, and even fashions have lurvived, if not amongst the Egyptians at least amongst the Nubians whom they had subjugated. The art of husbandry has not been modified, at least amongst the peasantry, and as formerly " the unchanging temperature of Egypt endows the people," as Bossuet has remarked, " with solid and constant minds." But the series of historio events could not have been accomplished without producing a correspond- ing effect on the Egyptian people ; immigrants of all roces have completely modified the urban civilisation. After acting as the teacher of the surrounding nations, Egypt had to be taught in her turn, and the Bomans, Byzantines, Arabs, and Europeait peoples successively became her masters. Extent and Population. Egypt may possibly now possess a smaller population than she did when at the height of her power ; but towns and villages have always been numerous on the banks of the Nile, and they follow in close proximity along the banks of the river, as in the time of Herodotus. In comparison with its extent of arable land, Egjrpt possesses one of the densest populations in the world. Indeed, Egypt proper consists entirely of lowlands which could be brought within the zone of irrigation. The rocky or sandy tracts which stretch beyond the valley of the Nile form a portion of Libya on the west, or of " Arabia," as it is called, on the east. The narrow strip, of " golden thread," with its "fringes" in the delta, composes the whole of the domain of the fellahin, and the only inhabitable spots beyond these limits are a few oases to the west, and the pasturages found in the eastern uplands. The triangle of the delta and the winding river valley, which a pedes- trian traverses easily in a few hours, provided he can find a boat in which to cross the Nile, compose all the rest of the country, which Amru described to the Caliph Omar in these words : " Imagine an arid desert and a verdant plain between two moimtainous ramparts ; that is Egypt." 814 NOUTII-EAHT AlUICA. Kf^ypt !• offiiMully rinid to |k)hm>hr a iiu|M^rfi il area of 400,000 M{uaro milpit, omitting tho AHJutic iMmHCHMioiiM iN'yond thu tSuoz (*uiml, but iiiclwliii)^ ull tbu Nilotio region botwoi'ii AnHuiin and VVudy-IIulfa. Tho population of (i.HOO.OOO, according to fho ctmHUHof IHH2, would Im< vory Mnmll in pro]M)rtion to thiH imnKniNo npiu'o, much Ichs, in fuct, comparatively pcuking, than that of 8<;andinuviu. But tho inhabitable part of Kgypt, roiH>mbliiig in shape a triangular kito with a long ninuous tail, in B(!arc('ly 12,000 mjuaro milus in oxtont, which givc^i thu country a dcnaity of population throe times greater than that uf Franco, and even Huporior to that of Helgium and Saxony. Kgypt is the Nile, and its very name is that by which the river was formerly known. Tho most ancient name of the country, that of Eem, or Eemi, that is to say, '' lUaok," also comes indirectly from the Nile, because it was derived from the violet tint of the alluvia deposited by the current, forming a contrast with the " red " sands and rooks of the desert. Tho terra Kam, or Kham, applied to tho African peoples in Genesis, is probably nothing more than the name of Kgypt itHclf. From this black soil, composed of fluvial deposits, spring forth the nutritive plants ; whilst, according to an ancient legend, man himself issued from it. All tho towns and village of Egypt are disposed along the banks of the river and its canals, depending for their existence on its life-giving waters. Oommunicationa between Upper and Lower Egypt could recently be effected only by the Nile, which is easily navigable, since boats ascend and descend with equal facility, either driven up stream by the north wind, or else drift down with the current. Shipwrecks or prolonged stoppages are likely to occur more especially at abrupt turnings, and on navigating tho ravines, whence irregular winds sweep across tho course of tho stream. Thk Arabian or Coast Range. Here and there, from Assuan to Cairo, the banks of the Nile are commanded either by the slopes of mountains, or by the edges of plateaux, whose height ranges from 300 to 2,300 feet. From these heights a whole section of Egypt lies at the feet of the traveller, from the eastern to the western frontier, with all its villages, canals and cultivated lands. Lower down the yellow walls of the rooks in many places bear the aspect of quarries, whose cleared spaces are now laid out in garden-plots. It is especially towards the east that the cliffs here and there assume an imposing appearance, although nowhere rising to any great elevation. The traveller must penetrate some distance from the Nile to the neighbourhood of the Red Sea before he reaches the coast range or border chain, which, however, hus been very imperfectly explored. It forms a northerly continuation of the Etbai range, some of whose peaks are said to attain a height of considerably over 6,000 feet. These highlands of the Arabian desert, commonly spoken of simply as El-Jebel, or " The Mountain," consist of crystalline rocks, such as granite, gneiss, mica schist, porphyry, and diorite. They are disposed in several distinct groups, separated from each other by the ramifications of sandy wadies. One of these THE AUABTAN OR fOAHT RANOE. »1A gmupn in Southom Kgypt given rim) to the trunnverHo (ihuin of the (!atara(>t«, which fonna the northern frontier of Nubiu projH'r, und niergen nuar >NHuun in tlio Libyan ronpe. In the Hycnito und gruuitu forinutioiiH, horo Mkirted by th« rupida, Fig. Od.-'DiiNaiTY or thi I'ohvlation or iikivrr. I I t A,a()0,lKX>. ■!.i.tui»».^,«y. ' □ Inhabitants per Square Mile. oto8. 2toaoo. aoo to 1,000. Toinia with orrr 90,000 inhabitant!. ^^—1—^— .^— ^ 120 MUen. are situated tbe famous quarries, now abandoned, where the Pharaohs procured the materials for their obelisks, statues, and other huge monolithic blocks. Towards the east the same group of hills, whence springs the chain of the Cataracts, 316 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. advances into the Red Sea in the form of a triangular peninsula, terminating in the Ras-Benas headland, and sheltering on the south the gulf of Umm-el-Eetcf, identified as the ancient port of Berenice. " ' ' ' North of the Nubian frontier, where the crystalline rocks occupy the whole breadth of Upper Egypt, the zone of granitic formations is gradually narrowed, while still maintaining its chief elevations in the neighbourhood of the coast. This region, now frequented only by a few scattered nomad tribes, was formerly worked for its mineral wealth by numerous gangs of miners and quarrymen. The Jehel-Zabarah, the Smaragdus of the ancients, which rises on the Red Sea coast, under the latitude of Edfu, contains in its veins garnets and other valuable crys- tals ; and in the year 1816, Cailliaud here discovered the beds of emeralds, which though far from abundant and of rather indifferent quality, were worked by the sovereigns of Egypt down to the year 1358. North and south of the mountain are still visible the remaino of the villages erected by the miners. Farther north, in the depression which runs from the Nile at Eoneh to the port of Kosseir, and near the Hamamat wells, have been discovered the remains of a town of two thousand inhabitants, built of stone, and not far off vast quarries of " verde antico," of " Egyptian breccia," and of othor varieties of diorite, which were used especially for cutting vases, sarcophagi, and statues. Still farther north follow the two groups forming the ancient Mount Claudian, now severally distinguished as the Jebel-Dokhan and the Jebel-Fatireh, the latter granitic, the former porphyritic. The monoliths hewn out of these hills were conveyed down to the coast of the Red Sea, and thence transported by the Suez Canal, or " Trajan's River," to the Nile, and so on to Alexandria, and there shipped for all the Mediterranean cities of the Roman - world. The Jebel-Dokhan, or " Smoky Mountain," the "Porphyrites Mons" of the ancients, contained a group of quarries, which during the Roman epoch was more actively worked than any other in Egypt, although the Egyptians themselves had never quarried this close-grained stone. Since the reign of the Emperor Claudius, Rome and Byzantium continued to import the admirable red porphyry, which was used in the erection of their temples and palaces. Here are still foimd columns 58 feet long, and 24 feet in compass, Lence larger than the largest block in " Pompey's Pillar." The Arab invasion of Egypt put an end to the operations carried on at these famous quarries, whose site is still indicated by enormous heaps of refuse and the remains of large towns. The porphyry formation of the Jebel-Dokhan crops out in the midst of the granitic rocks, like the analogous porphyries of the Jebel-Katheriu amid the granites of the Sinai peninsula. Over against Mount Tor, on the Slnaitic coast, stands the Jebel-Gharib, whose granite peaks rise to an altitude of 6,120 feet. This is the last lofty summit of the border range, and according to Schweinfurth, it forms the culminating point of the whole Arabian desert. So abrupt are its sides that it seems quite inaccessible In the distance are visible Mount Tenareb and the Jebel-Shellalla, the latter separated by the Wady-el-Tih from the Jebel-Attaka. AU the mountain groups in this region are distinguished by numerous pyramidal crests, whose spurs are GEOLOGY OF THE COAST RANGE. »17 similarly disposed in pyramids grouped symmetrically round the central cone. These uplands, which do not exceed 1,000 feet in altitude, and which are indebted for their imposing appearance to their abrupt walls falling precipitously down to the Gulf of Suez, form the northern extremity of the granitic system. Farther north, nothing occurs except limestone rocks or sand dunes. Both slopes of the range are also overlaid with layers of more recent formation. On the east side cretaceous taluses are found in many places resting on a granite foundation, and ';Ji-rU'3 Fig. 96. — AssuAN : Ancient Quaruv, now abandonfu. several of the headlands along the coast belong to these cretaceous formations. Here also occur deposits of sulphur, as well as naphtha springs and beds of bitumen. Basaltic eruptions occurred at some remote period in the Jebel range, and these lavas are visible as far as the neighbourhood of Ismailia. Geology of the Coast Range. On the coast the prevailing rocks are sandstones and limestones of contemporary formation, in which are embedded fossil shells and polyps. Some more recent sandstones and limestones of like origin are entirely formed of these animal remains. As on the Arabian seaboard, a gradual movement of upheaval has been observed 818 NOETH-EAST AFRICA. along the Egyptian coast, produced either by the vertical rising of the land or by the subsidence of the surrounding waters. Altogether the west coast is more healthy and less obstructed by coral reefs than the opposite side. The sea is also deeper near the shore, and good harbours are consequently more numerous. West of the granites, schists and porphyries of the border range, the rocks over- lying the crystalline nucleus consist of sandstones and limestones. In the southern district rises an isolated sandstone ma^s resembling those of Nubia, Eordof&n, and Sen&r. This rock, especially at the Jebel-Silsileh between Assuan and Esneh, is very close-grained and disposed in regular layers, rendering il peculiarly suitable for the erection of large buildings. Hence from this source have been obtained the materials for the construction of thousands of temples and other structures. The breaches made by the ancient quarrymen in the rocks on the right side inspire a sort of awe by their prodigious dimensions. According to Charles Blanc, these mountains supplied the building stone for at least half of the old Egyptian monu- ments. The quarries on the west side, although less extensive, are more remarkable from the artistic point of view, for they contain several temples excavated in the live rock, as well as sepidohral caves and statues. Scarcely had the quarries been opened when they appear to have been converted into tombs. In the northern section of the Arabian range the sandstones are replaced by limestones of various dates, some belonging to the cretaceous, others to the eocene epochs. To these chalk formations chiefly belong the cliffs stretching along the right bank of the Nile, which present the most varied and picturesque forms of monumental aspect, separated by mere fissures or by gloomy ravines, and often crowned with &uitastic towers and pyramids. In the extreme north the last hills, terminating at Cairo itself with the Jebel- Mokattam, or " Inscribed Mountain," are composed almost entirely of nummulites — ostrsea, cerithium, and other shells massed together in a limestone conglomerate. Owing to the abundance of their fossils, they have become a sort of Eldorado for geologists. These nummulitic strata include in some places transparent alabasters of the choicest quality. Such are, west of Beni-Suef, those of the Jebel-Urakam, whence have been derived the materials employed in the construction of Mohammed All's mosque in the citadel of Cairo. Such are, also, farther south the alabasters, which take their name from the city of Alabastron, whose site was not far removed from the spot now occupied by the town of Minieh. But more important than these costly marbles are the quarries of building- stone skirting the Nile, especially those of Turah and Masarah. From the vast pyramids erected on the opposite side of the river some idea may be formed of the excavations begun six thousand years ago in these nummulitic limestone quarries, which also supplied the building materials for the cities of Memphis and Cairo. tftfSL 1 THE LIBYAN PLATEAU— THE MIKAOE. 819 The Libyan Plateau. The Libyan hills are lower than those skirting the right side of the river. Taken as a whole, the relief of Egypt presents the character of a pilane inclined in the direction from east to west. From the crest formed by the coast range the highlands and plateaux diminish gradually in height down to the Nile Valley. From the western edge of this valley the ground also falls until at last it sinks below the level of the sea. On both sides of the strip of verdant and inhabited land fringing the Nile the zone of rocks is alike destitute of permanent dwellings. But the Libyan region being more uniform, void of lofty eminences and covered with sand, presents a more desolate appearance than the eastern zone. It already forms part of the great desert, which stretches thence westwards right across the continent to the Atlantic seaboard. Seen from the pyramid of Cheops, this Libyan plateau might seem to be nothing more than a boundless plain varied only by sand dunes. But this is merely the effect of an optical delusion, as we are assured by the few travellers who have ventured to penetrate into these dreary solitudes. Taken as a whole, the desert comprised between the Nile and the depression of the oases is a plateau of nummu- litic limestone rising to a height of 830 feet above the river level. The limits of this plateau are indicated by escarpments, while its surface is disposed in distinct sections by the erosive action of old marine waters. Hillocks of uniform elevation rising here and there above the plain serve to indicate the primitive level of the land. The base of all these promontories was undoubtedly washed in pre-quater- nary times by the Mediterranean, whose waves were broken into surf amid these rocky archipelagoes, where at present water appears only in the form of delusw«h < mirages. The Mirage. Nowhere is this remarkable phenomenon of the mirage seen to gpreater advan- tage than in the Libyan and Arabian deserts. It often assumes the most weird and fantastic forms, the outlines of lovely landscapes, hills and valleys, verdant plains, everywhere interspersed with the treacherous appearance of broad lacustrine basins, glittering under the torrid rays of the tropical sun. And so vivid are these scenic effects, that the most experienced travellers, and the animals themselves, are at times deceived by the pleasant phantom and thus beguiled to their destruction. When crossing the Arabian Desert in the year 1883, Colonel Colbome tells us that on one' occasion the mirage was intensely real. Before him stretched a large lake, its blue waters laughing in the sun, studded with gem-like islets clad in verdure, and bordered by castles, high pinnacles, turrets, and battlements, and again by gleaming villages and smiling hamlets — the whole scene fairylike in its beauty, while presenting a most painful contrast to the arid sand and fierce heat and con- suming thirst from which the traveller was suffering. It is in vain that we rub our eyes and seek to disabuse ourselves of the illusion. The spectacle lies before us i I NOBTH-EAST AFRICA. undeniable, apparently solid and tangible. We know it is mocking us, like an ignis fatuus ; but the most accurate knowledge of the physical laws which govern the phenomena will not brush the image from the retina. There is little wonder that the ignorant and inexperienced should have frequently yielded to the delusion. But life is always the price paid for such a mistake. Some years ago a company of soldiers perished from thirst in this very region. Disre- garding the warning of their guides, the unfortunate men, fresh from Egypt, and mad with thirst, broke from the ranks and rushed towards the seeming lakes of transparent water which were presented to their eyes on all sides. They pressed on eagerly towards the ever-receding phantom, and one by one fell prostrate, to leave their bones to bleach on the sands. On another occasion a detachment was sent across the desert to Berber on its way to Khartum. The soldiers, refusing to be checked by the guides, consumed all their supply of water when in sight of the El-Bok Mountains, confident of their ability to reach the imaginary lake. The heat was intense ; the men grew faint and in a few hours died one by one in horrible agony. It is not surprising that by the Arabs this strange phenomenon should have been named the bahr-eah'Uheitan, or " Devil's Sea." * !ifLv.j^« ?fej 1 ' - " '■" ■■■'■■' '"•' -•■* ■■ «■' ■;•»» Ai-> f,. - ♦«M;sf*iww. '*-!5Fwii> '*j;;»w.v;feS-4^ if^sfyjiimjj'' ■yi^.w:f^t?'^--Z Geological Features. The surface of the Libyan desert is completely covered with sand, which accumulates in vast quantities in the depressions, leaving only the higher rocky eminences partly exposed. In few places are the cliffs absolutely bare, being almost everywhere clothed with the yellow or reddish particles of disintegrated quarts. These quartzose sands are certainly of foreign origin, for the plateau itself presents nothing but limestone rooks and clays. These remains of primitive rocks have been brought from distant uplands by the action of the winds and, possibly, also of marine waters. By their ceaseless movement over the surface the shifting sands have imparted a remarkable smoothness to the surface rocks, which in many places exhibit the lustre of polished marble. All the scattered blocks are, as it were, varnished by the sand, which has rounded off their angles and softened their rugged outlines. Some of these boulders have thus acquired such brilliancy that observers have mistaken them for volcanic obsidians. The geolog^t Zittel supposes that the incessant friction may even have tended to produce a chemical modification in the very structure of the rocks; for a large number of flints are met, in the centre of which is embedded a core of nummulitic limestone. Hence the stone has been apparently transformed from the outside inwardly, a phenomenon which can be attributed only to the constant friction of the sand on the surface. Amongst the myriads of nummulites covering the ground in dense layers, all those occurring on the surface have by this action of the arenaceous particles been entirely changed to flints, assuming a bluish or even a metallic appearance, whereas those lower down, being protected from the friction as well as fronl the action of light, remain white and retain their limestone formations. * ■' Wiih Hicks Ftiaha in the Sudan," p. 244. ke an igma govern the frequently ike. Some n. Disre- Lgypt, and g lakes of pressed on », to leave it was sent sing to be ght of the lake. The by one in henomenon und, which igher rocky bare, being isintegrated the plateau { primitive winds and, surface the ocks, which I blocks are, md softened ih brilliancy ' even have the rocks; added a core 'ormed from ;he constant ten covering Y this action uish or even the friction } formations. I "rr- C'V THE EGYPTIAN PETBIEIED EOBESTS. 821 But whatever be the chemical forces that have converted the nummulites into flints, these do not remain intact after their transformation. The vicissitudes of the temperature, which beneath these cloudless skies varies so greatly between day and night, cause the stones to chip, strewing vast spaces with their fragments. Occasionally the breakage of these flints is effected in such a way as to give them a perfectly regular form. Thus in a wady of the Arabian range west of Beni-Suef are met, scattered about in considerable quantities, siliceous fragments resembling truncated cones and presenting eight symmetrical facets. To the sudden changes of temperature have also been attributed the broken and even-worked flakes that have been found in various prehistoric workshops through- out Egypt. But human labour is so clearly stamped on these specimens that it is quite impossible to confound them with the products of natural causes. In the Libyan desert Zittel sought in vain for any naturally produced siliceous chippings bearing even a remote resemblance, to the spear and dart heads worked by the men of the stone age, whether' in Egypt, Europe or the New World. Amongst the stones of regular form found in the Egyptian deserts, Cailliaud and Russegger were the first to call attention to the carnelians, jaspers, agates, and other hard stones pre- senting the form of lentils or discs of various dimensions, encircled by a round ridge somewhat like a ring. The interior of these natural specimens is often disposed in concentric circles, and such concretions are very frequently found associated with fossil wood. The Egyptian Petrified Forests. • • • ■' , By a remarkable contrast, petrified trees are known to occur in many parts of a region where living plants have become so very rare. On the east slope of the Jebel-Mokattam, not far from Cairo, is found, if not a " petrified forest," as it is usually called, or " masts of shipwrecked vessels," pierced with holes by phollades, and covered with marine deposits, as the early travellers pretended, at least a number of stems transformed to blocks of flint or chalcedony. But by penetrating farther into the desert we come upon far more extensive petrifications, which might really deserve the name of " forests." In a depression of the Arabian plateau, to the south- east of Cairo, the trunks of trees of all sizes are found in such multitudes that certain tracts are exclusively covered with the siliceous stems or fragments of fossil wood. In the Libyan desert, west of the Pyramids, other " petrified forests " contain stems over sixty feet long, with their roots and branches, and even with the bark still perceptible in some places. Travellers have also discovered similar masses of fossil wood in various parts of the Nubian desert, in Sen&r and Eordof&n, and even on the upland plateaux of Abyssinia. In all these regions the vegetable remains so petrified belong to the order of the sterculiacese. In Egypt the prevailing variety is the uicholia NHotica, and a species of bamboo obtained from these forests is also preserved in one of the natural history collections in Cairo. Whence come all these stems of petrified trees ? Some geologists have suggested that they may have been washed up by the sea at a time when the Mediterranean 21— AF. NORTH-EAST AFBICA. penetrated much farther southwards than at present. But in that case it is difficult to understand how these fossil woods could have been stranded in such a good state of preservotion, ond, moreover, without being associated with ony of those vegetable or animal marine organisms which are always found adhering to driftwood. Nor is any theory advanced to explain how this flotsam and jetsam could have been borne over lofty mountains to the upland plateaux of Abyssinia. On the other hand it is impossible to suppose that these petrifications can have been brought down by fluvial currents such as that of the Nile, because they are nowhere associated with any alluvial deposits. Hence these sterculiaceae of the Nilotic basin must be regarded as still in situ, or at least in the immediate vicinity of the places where they originally flourished. The opinion which finds greatest favour with geologists is that the vegetable fibres were gradually petrified under the action of thermal waters, such as still occur in various parts of Egj'pt, and especially in the region of the oases. Becoming saturated with these waters, the fallen trunks would be gradually changed to stone, just as they become converted into peat or turf in the swampy districts of more northern latitudes. Doubtless the petrifications of herbs and other vegetation at present going on roimd about the geysers of Iceland and of Montana in North America, differ from those of the Egyptian deserts in their general appearance and process of formation, for in these districts the plants are changed not into particles of quartz but into amorphous flints. But allowance should, perhaps, be made for climatic dif- ferences and for the long action of time. Close to the " petrified forest " of Cairo is observed a dome-shaped sandstone hill, the Jebel-el-Ahmar, or " Red Mountain," the interior of which is easily quarried, thanks to the softer character of the deeper strata. May not this sandstone hill, isolated amid the surrounding nummulitic limestones, have been gradually accumulated by the action of some ancient geyser P And to the similar action of thermal springs may we not attribute the preservation of the trees on the neighbouring plain, which at that time was doubtless thickly wooded? v-.^'N-i -;•:■:■:''-■■;■..::" x-.- ' The Western Oases. .'•i'rf To the west of Egypt as well as to the west of Nubia a chain of oases is developed which describes a curve almost parallel to the course of the Nile; The first of these oases is that of Eurkur, which although scarcely more than 60 miles from Assuan, has never been inhabited. At about the same distance in a north-westerly direction stretches the so-called "Great Oasis" of the ancients, now known as that of Ehargeh, from the name of its chief town. Including the palm- groves of Boris, it occupies a depression stretching north and south for a distance of 90 miles. It does not, however, form one continuous oasis, but rather an archi- pelago of small oases, a cluster of cultivated islands separated from each other by intervening tracts destitute of vegetation. West of Ehargeh lies the oasis of Dakhel, or Dakleh, that is to say, the "Interior," also knoiwn as th& Wah-el-Gharbieh, or "Western Oasis." Dakhel is tmm&v I THE WESTERN OASES. 828 is difficult good state 3 vegetable ^ood. Nor have been 8 can have se they are :ce8B of the ite vicinity is greatest ified under EgjT)t, and waters, the B converted it going on differ from I formation, tz but into limatic dif- t " of Cairo Mountain," ' the deeper nummulitio ent geyser P )reservation less thickly of oases is NUe. The re than 60 istance in a acients, now ig the palm- El distance of er an archi- vch. other by to say, the Dakhel is separated by a limestone wilderness, partly covered with shifting sandn, from the oasis of Farafreh, which is situated 120 miles to the north-west. The labyrinth of rocks occupying the intermediate space between Dakhel and Farafreh is one of the moot remarkable formations of the kind in the whole wr)rld. The narrow fissures winding along and intersecting each other at variuos angles amid the still preserved upright rocky masses resemble the streets of some weird city lined with fantastic monuments, pyramids, obelisks, triumphal arches, sphinxes, lions, and even statues faintly reproducing the outlines of the human figure. One of the natural gates on the north side of this uninhabited city has by Rohlfs been named the Bab-el- lasmund, in honour of a fellow-countryman. A still more colossal gate- way, which stands at the outlet of the labyrinth facing the Dakhel oasis, is known as the Bab-el-Cailliaud, in memory of the first European traveller who in recent times has penetrated into these inhospitable regions. Several oases of smaller size. are scattered round about the Wah-el-Farafreh, forming an archipelago which is prolonged in a north-easterly direction by the oasis of Bakharieh, probably the "Little Oasis" of the ancients. It is one of those lying nearest to the Nile, being situated not more than 90 miles from the plains of Minieh in the fluvial basin. But in this district the series of depressions ramifies in two different directions. One branch continues to develop itself parallel with the Nile, while the other follows the line of the Mediterranean seaboard west of Alexandria. Its axis intersects the depressions of the Bahr-Bel&-mlL, or " Water- less Lakes," and other dried-up lacustrine basins, ultimately terminating in the oasis of Siwah, formerly consecrated to Jupiter Ammon. North of the Siwah depression rise the rocky escarpments of the plateau of Cyrenaica, while towards the south an isolated system of coarse limestones is encircled by lofty sand dunes. In this region bordering on the sea and already comprised within the zone of winter rain6, the water develops vast lacustrine basins, all saturated with salt. Amongst them is thq extensive Lake Sittra, which floods the lowest part of a depression lying midway between the Bahr-Bel&-m& and the Siwah oasis. But this " sparkling sapphire set in gold," as it has been described, merges in one direction in dreary morasses. Other cavities are now empty. Excavated in the form of wells to a depth of from 60 to 150 feet, they still retain at the bottom a deposit of mud mixed with salt and gypsum. Springs even continue to bubble up in some ; but the banks of these saline waters are everywhere destitute of vegetation. In the dried-up lacustrine hollows nothing is seen except a little scrub in places where the saline efflorescences have been overlaid by a thick layer of drifting sands. Not far from Lake Sittra stretches the now-abandoned oasis of £1-Araj, which is being gradually swallowed up in the sands. The outer zone of plantations has already partly disappeared ; the half-choked-up wells now contain nothing but a scanty supply of brackish water ; and the time is rapidly approaching when the only evidence of the former residence of man in this district will be tombs in the Egyptian style excavated in the neighbouring cliffs. ^^P-M N0ETII-EA8T AFRICA. ThK SiWAH Oa918. The Siwah oasis, where spoke the renowned oruclo of Ammon, consulted on one occasion by the Maoodoniun conqueror, rivals in beauty that o| Dakhel, although the limestone hills forming its outer enclosure connot be compared with the picturesque heights of the Bub-el- Cailliaud. Nevertheless thoy present scorcely less fantastic forms. In certain parts of the plateau the cliffs terminate in flights of steps with perfectly horizontol slabs and of uniform depth, like those leading to some palatial structure. The strange effect is heightened by the colour of the Btone, which contrasts vividly with the white sand strewn over the steps. In the Fig. 07.— OuAiNH OF Oamk Wmi o» Uutpt. Bod* 1 : IJKOflOO. 30' 95' OASta Of afui/AM KatpFarafpa \- * ZMJM or MIUritAM ^'Z AfJMT OfM/rMtt 86" E . of Greenwich . laoHllaa. depression enclosed by these remarkable cUffs the steep heights rise to the level of the plateaux, of which they originally formed an integral portion. They now stand isolated amid the cultivated plains and palm-groves, some crowned with edifices, others disposed in ramparts and turrets presenting the appearance of fortifications. The blue lakelets scattered over the verdant plain impart to the oasis of Jupiter Ammon the aspect of a pleasant retreat from the interminable wilderness. But the traveller's anticipations are presently dashed by the brackish taste of the waters and by the miasmatic exhalations rising from th'e surrounding marshy tracts. Near the saline springs flow some streams of fresh water, though — 1- — .ViKM iil imii^ji:.. ' -- "«**~*w*'s»«®i!^ag^^Biil*'" ii ^ i WiHHu. i i.i ORIGIN OF TIIE OA8ES. 026 tod on one , although with the it scarcely ) in flights leading to >ur of the ». In the 30* :^ for the most part thermal; other waters contain sulphur, while the so-called fountain of the " Sun/' said to be alternately cool in the middle of the day and warm at night, has really a nearly uniform temperature of from 84° to 86° F. It has been identified with the spring still flowing at some distance from the temple of Um-beidah. At the same time it is easy to understand that, in the absence of precise measurements, the ancients may easily have been deceived as to its real temperature, and thus suppose it cold by contrast under the burning sun, and hot during the chilly nights. With the date groves of the oasis are intermingled the olive, the apricot, the pomegranate, the plum, and the vine, while the clearings are planted with onions. Although annexed to Egypt in 1820, Siwah is rather a geographical dependence of Cyrenaica ; for it is connected with the slopes draining to the Gulf of Sidra by the Faredgha oasis and by other verdant islets surrounded by rocky and sandy wastes. Towards the north another depression in the plateau on the route to Alexan- dria is occupied by the oasis of Qara, which is inhabited by some forty persons. According to a local tradition this number of forty cannot be exceeded, death inevitably re-establishing the equilibrium whenever disturbed by an excess of births or by too great an inroad of immigrants. he level of They now xmed with earance of art to the terminable le brackish irrounding er, though , Origin op the Oaaes. At sight of the chain of oases diverging from the Nile, and winding through a series of valleys and gorges seawards, it was only natural to regard these low-lying and fertile tracts as the remains of some old watercourse, some western branch of the Nile now partly obliterated by the invading sands. The natives have pre- served legends recording the g^radual desiccation of this waterless stream, and down to a recent period most travellers still sought the traces of the Nile in the oases of the Libyan desert. Even on some contemporary maps the channel of the so-called Bahr-Bel&-m& is drawn from valley to valley, as if its course had actually been determined by local surveys. It is in any case highly probable that at some remote geological age fluvial or marine waters, excavating straits and valleys, may have flowed through the region now occupied by the oases. But during the present epoch no branch of the Nile or inlet of the Mediterranean has penetrated into these depressions of the desert, which contain neither alluvia of fluvial origin, nor marine deposits asso- ciated with contemporary molluscs. Nevertheless the thermal waters of the oases contain animal species belonging both to the Mediterranean and Red Sea fauna. Such, for instance, are the two little fishes called cyprinodon diapar and ct/prinodon cakritanua* But if in their formation the oases are independent of the present Nile, they may possibly be connected with it through the waters which feed their date plantations. Certainly the copious springs serving to irrigate the oases of Dakhel • Zittal," Die Sahara." BmwMiiwi i^n m NORTTI-EART AFRIOA. ., and Kitrufrrh cannot huvo tluMr uri^fin in tho iliNtrictii thomiiolvcN, for rain in huro tilt* rarest o( phunonicna. thv nativoH arc thoroughly convinctHl that thi,.?•. ■;-'.r- The Natron Lakes. -/A' North of the Bahr-Bel&-m&, and parallel witu the series of depressions collec- tively known by this name, a valley of mori regular form running south-east and north-west is occupied in its lowest cavities by seven shallow morasses. These are the so-called " Natron Lakes." Although separated from the nearest bend of the Nile by a shingly desert over 24 miles broad, the El-Natrun Valley most probably receives its supply of moisture from the river. During the three months following the autumnal equinox the water, "of a dark blood-red colour," due TIIK NATRON I.AKFX 8*27 iiin in horo wm wuten a cortuiii But this ihe undcr- lliuud und lir 8upplii!H uin Htroum sought in rn regions during its Ired yards »eraturo of n maladies t conaider- lative, who >me, where ion. Caro kunats and n order to lave at all pply seems )en choked )r ranging }f 200 feet 1 the great 'alls of tho ;tom. But ;cimiul»tcd is pierced, , the water !on8 coUeo- ;h-east and es. These «t bend of alley most ree months iour," due {wrhujHi to tho infuHoria inhabiting it, oozes up to tho surface from tho east side uf tho valley, whence it flows in rills and rivulets down to tho liikos. In those basins tho waters increase till tho end of DocrnilKT, by wliich time they have ,i\ * nined a depth of about G feet. Then they sulwide, leaving some of tho cavities quitu dry. Their composition varies with tho different basins. In some initi Jne salt previnls, in others carbonate of sn as before, e absorbing aed his pace e wind had out in our iprisoned us had turned southwards, and was now travelling over the desert away from us, I earnestly hoped, to expend itself in space before meeting witL any unfortunate victims. Inexpressibly thankful was I as we entered the town, for I could not but feel that it had perhaps been a race for life. It was now over and we were safe ; but it was several hours, or I may more truly say days, before the effect on my overstrung nerves passed entirely away." * On an average, northern breezes are six times more frequent at Cairo than those from the south. But as we ascend the Nile and approach the eqiiatorial regions the equilibrium tends to be established between the conflicting currents, and in Nubia the northern or winter are about fairly balanced with the southern or simuner winds, iij^.-'r. "-/■'«, 'V ■>■'■ -'',;.-;■,■ ;;■ ;;^-.' , ^ Rainfall. The region of the Egyptian delta is comprised within the Mediterranean climatic zone. Winter and summer here succeed each other as in Southern Europe, the only difference being that the intermediate seasons of spring and autumn are reduced to much narrower limits.t The Egyptian summer, during which the Nile waters rise and spread over the land, is accompanied by the clearest skies ; yet the atmosphere is then heavily charged with moisture, often almost to the point of saturation. On the Red Sea coast especially, the traveller finds himself at times enveloped as in a vapour bath. Winter is the rainy season, but it is seldom attended by much humidity, although in the lower delta the rainfall often suffices to interrupt the communica- tions. The banks of the canals, here the only highways, are changed by the slightest showers into quagmires of treacherous and slippery mud. Even in Alexandria, lying as it does within the influence of the moisture-bearing clouds from the Mediterranean, the mean annual rainfall is only 7 inches according to Russegger, or 8 inches according to more recent observers ; that is to say, one-third of the quantity received by Paris, and one-fifth of the average for the whole of France.^ At Cairo, where the marine vapours arrive already deprived of much of their humidity, the mean discharge is much less, amounting to no more than about 1\ inch, or the fiftieth part of the discharge at Cherra-Ponji in British India. The anoi^at Egyptians called themselves the inhabitants of the "Pure Region." Nevertheless the sky is overcast at Cairo for over three months in the year, and at times the downpours have been heavy enough to flood the streets. In 1824, and again in 1845, several houses were destroyed by these sudden freshets. In the Arabian and Libyan deserts south of the delta, the rains are still lighter, although not altogether unknown, as is so often asserted. Tremendous discharges * " Wanderings in the Sudan," toI. ii., p. 250 t Mean temperature of Egypt . . Alezandiia, 0)8° F. Cairo, 70 F. „ ., in August (hottest month) „ 7U' F. „ 86° F. „ „ in January (coldest month) „ 54" F. „ 60° F. Highest recorded „ lll'F. ., 116° P. X Mean nnniial niin&ll at Alexandria mmmmK^0'f0ii'90it»ii^^ ' i0fkmn FLORA OP THE OASES. 887 even so far issertion ia ,8 formerly (lands. In lich flowed woodlands for lack of ung mixed ian climate itements of xlifications, , cannot be ms of mul- )d to bring lade during ) statements ofirmed by of Suez has ' the fresh- >f man, still leas, to have inity of the .erating the r increasing 1 so poor m the lack of watered hills ng tdnds to ly destroyed rtly covered Israelites to the boatmen to deck their scapes is duo especially to the prevailing African vcgotation, lioro represented by the tarfa {tamaria Niloticn), the date, und sycomore. The dCltn-pulm, which, however, nowhere grows spontimeously in Kgypt, is met in the gardens only above Esneh. Formerly the Fayum bore the name of " Sycamore Land ; " und one of the ancient appellations of Egypt itself was " Lp ' of the liek Tree," probably a species of palm. All the villages have still their avenues of palms encircling the walls, or fring- ing the banks of the canals, and everywhere the people gather in the evening beneath the shade of the broad -branching sycamore. The sycamore, a very different species from the plant known by that name in Europe, was formerly far more common in Egypt thon at present. Its wood, supposed to be "incorruptible," was employed in the manufacture of costly furniture, and especially of the coffins placed in the sepulchral chambers. After a lapse of three thousand years, the boards recovered from these tombs still retain their firmness and delicacy of texture, thanks to the excessive dryness of the atmosphere. The fruit of the sycomore was regarded by the ancients as one of the choicest, whence the saying that " the man who had once tasted it could not fail to return to Egypt." On this account it was customary on setting out for foreign lands to eat of these figs, in order thereby to secure the traveller's return to the Nilotic plains. Now, however, the fruit of the Egyptian sycamore is regarded as fit food only for the ass. Has its flavour deteriorated, or has the taste of the Egyptians themselves undergone a change since those times P But if some species would seem to have been modified, others are known to have entirely disappeared. The dug-out tree stems in which the dead were laid during the eleventh dynasty belong to varieties which are now met only in Sudan. The fruit of the dClm-palm, which is no longer found north of Upper Egypt, and that of the arg^n, now confined to Nubia, occur in great abundance in the old Egjrptian burial-places. And what has become of the papyrus, whose name is associated more intimately than any other with Egyptian civilisation itself P Salt, Drovetti, Reynier, Minutoli, have discovered it in the neighbourhood of Damietta ; but it is no longer found in any other part of Egypt. Thus it has all but disap- peared from its original home, while still flourishing in Syria and in Sicily, whither it was introduced from the Nile Valley. Where also are the masses of pink lotus, with its broad-spreading leaves, beneath which the people of Alexandria, in the time of Strabo, floated on the still waters, enjoying the cool zephyrs and perfume of the flowers P The white lotus, formerly diffused throughout the whole land, is no longer met beyond the limits of the delta. Beeds and the pink epilobium are now the plants most frequently occurring on the shores of the lakes and meres in liower Egypt. )ean, Asiatic, lent, at least ;yptian land- Flora of the Oases. V;! ■ V ;' The flora of the oases, separated from that of the Nile Volley for an unknown cycle of ages, presents some remarkable features. Thus while the Egyptian 22— AF. NOllTU-EAST AFllICA. plants aro inuinly of African orif?in, those of tlio oases, whether cnltivated or growing in the wild state, are njostly of I'luropeun descent. Hence the inference that these depnssions wore in direct contact with the west Mediterranean lauds at un epoch antecedent to their relations with Kgypt properly so called. The greater the extent of the oases, the greater is naturally found to be the voriety of their flora. In that of Farafreh Aschersou collected ninety-one species, more than double that number in Dakhel, and aa many as two hundred in Khargoh. But the widely diffused plauta MBB i BM y «g^^ PAUNa am tiviitod or 3 inference m luuds at I to bo the lue apecies, 1 Khurgeh. [hargch, is le Arabian 1 spccios of 8 in uU the ora of this If Home ired on the bo latter a i'^alley from the Lower ture. The iliarly with •d have also e retired to xn Oinbos. 'ild animals aracal, the stic cat, the on the bas- lives freely species of the present the ancient )m varieties y are here ves to their V inhabited nsects, have the sands pecies, such twice every year, flying in spring north tn Europe to er loy tthe tn nenti of the tompeiMhr climutcH, returning in autumn to reoccupy < ir nests, \ leti Htn '> It itluug th ^ banks of the Nile us fur south as the foot of the Ain 'uia, I ' iidM. I t stationary birds in Kgypt th(>ro are numerous sjufics, h< vcr m which *"-i* distinguJNheil for their rare beauty. The white eagle Huars iuli t lighnr lu- Mi regions; while the nectarine with its metallic sheen, lovely as the h loiuff-l.^rnl of the New World, flits and darts urn id the garden flowers. The I'/uiiwIi'ius ^(jyptiaciit, supposed by the ancients to be the faithful companion of the crocodile, still enlivens the banks of the Egyptian Nile, from which the great saurian has long retreated to the Nubian waters. With him also the ibis has departed for the southern solitudes ; but pigeons still flutter in dense clouds above the cultivated plains. In fact this bird forms everywhere a characteristic feature of the landscape in the inhabited parts of the country. " Every village has its pigeon-houses, looking like great mud cones, and in the evening the owners go out and call them in. An amusing instance of the usual Egyptian dishonesty was told me the other day. When a man wants to get hold of extra pigeons, he goes out of an evening ; but instead of calling them he frightens the pigeons away. They do not understand this ; keep circling above, and swoop down now and then towards their houses. Other pigeons, seeing this commotion, join them, and as soon as the man sees there are enough, he -hides. The whole of the birds, old and new, then go into the house, and the man returning, shuts them in. This would be a fine business if it were not that all of them do the same thing, and therefore each gets caught in his turn. They know this perfectly well, but no Egyptian fellah could resist the temptation of cheating his neighbour."* The waters of the lakes and lagoons, throughout the delta region, are also frequented by myriads of aquatic fowl. Amongst the commonest species here met are the flamingo, pelican, heron, crane, and duck. Some of these birds are captured by the hand. Concealing his head in an empty gourd, which seems to float casually on the surface, the fellah swims stealthily towards the bird keeping guard, and seizing it suddenly by the feet from below, draws it under before it has time to give the alarm. Then the flock being more easily surprised, may be taken in large numbers. Like the aquatic birds on the sedgy banks, fish teem in multitudes in the waters of Menzaleh and the other lakes of the lower delta. The annual opening of the fishing season is celebrated by a feast, which coincides with the arrival of the mullets from the Mediterranean in the Gemileh lagoon. All the channels leading into the interior of the basin are closed by a long line of nets ; then at a given moment the fishermen get their boats ready, armed with hooks and harpoons, while on the neighbouring beach the feast is prepared by the women. Presently the sea begins to glitter ; the shoal of fish, pursued by the porpoises and other voracious animals, crowd about the entrance, causing the water to sparkle with a thousand prismatic tints. A suppressed murmur, as of many voices, caused by the rush of the living masses and splash of the troubled waters, gradually increases, and •£. SartoriuB, •' Three Months in the Sudan," p. 32. I I W m B40 NORTII-EAHT AFUK^A. iM'comes mingltMl with tho nlioutn of the men, and tho Hhrickii of women and obildron. Now the terrified hIiouIh get pent up in theniirrow piiHmigeund uiitungled in the netn. Hero they ure cuMiiy captured in inyriadM, and in a few hourn all tho HHliing-HniaekH an; fiUed to the gunwalen. Hut after tliiH Hrnt take tho fish are uHoweu8ou to enter freely into tho lagoon, where thoy uro bunted in tho open waters. In the Nile itnelf the most common Bpecies i« the ho- called shnbal, a fish anned on the back with three sharp and barbed spines, which inflict painful wounds on ihom who touch it. Tho sbabal is amongst tho very few species that utter a faint cry when taken from tho water. Tho sound resembles somewhat the chirp of the cicada, although not quite so loud. A largo number of tho Nile and Red Sea species have been represented on tho ancient monuments with such truth to nature that Hussegger has succeeded in identifying all of them.* The opening of the Suez Canal has been followed by a partial intermingling of tho Mediterranean and Red Soa fauna, which had hitherto remained quite distinct. Fishes, molluscs, and other marine fornjs have passed from one basin to tho other, while shoals of various species havo mot midway in tho Bitter Lakes. Tho free navigation from sea to sea is obstructed by several causes, such as tho exclusively sandy nature of the canal bed nd embankments, the currents setting in and out, the excessive salinity of tht water, the incessant passage especially of steamers. The carnivorous species do not penetrate to any great distance into the canal, owing to the absence or rarity of the fish they prey upon. Nor has the Mediterranean yet been reached by the various corals which are so richly represented in the Red Sea. One of the Egyptian insects, the atettchua aaeer, or sacred beetle, has acquired in tho history of myths the symbolic sense of creation and renewed life. An image of the sun and of all the heavenly orbs in virtue of her globular form, she also creates a little world or microcosm of her own with the clay in which she deposits her eggs, and which she rolls with untiring efforts from the river-bank to the edge of the desert, where she buries it in the sands. She dies immediately her work is accomplished ; but as soon as hatched, the young scaraba^i resume their creative functions. This particular variety appears to have migrated southwards, like so many other animal and vegetable species in Egypt. While still very common in Nubia, it is now seldom met below Assuan, although a certain number were lately seen by M. Maspero at Saqqarah. The cause of its almost total disappearance from Upper Egypt is perhaps to be attributed to the greater breadth of the cultivated zone which in many places now intervenes between the banks of the Nile and the skirt of the desert. In Nubia the distance the beetles have to traverse with their precious burdens is usually much less. The Coptic mothers often suppend round their sick child's neck a living scarabaeus wrapped in a rag or enclosed in a nut- shell. * " Reisen in Guropa, Aaien, und Afrika." INUAblTANTS OF EOYIT— THE COITS. Ml mmon and i outungU'il mrit ull tho ho tiHh uro ro they uro AhH annod wouiuIm on itter a fuint hirp of the ntod on the uccceded in llowed by a lad hitherto pasHod from .way in the breral causes, knients, the le incessant )trate to any ^h thoy prey lorols which has acquired An image »rm, she also she deposits : to the edge her work is heir creative cards, like so Y common in r were lately saronce from he cultivated Nile and the se with their ippend round sed in a nut- Inmaiutanth ok Ktic forms of tic language mth century ut since the liout Egypt, cal dialects, gn religions, built in the e mausoleum f enas, which St Egyptian »y a remark- hey are the ledgers, and in business, Under the itirely in the keeping had at they had of European ation of the with a wider knowledge of Arabic literature, gradually deprived the native Christians of the chief administrative functions. The inferior positions of scribes and notaries are, Fig. 100. — EoTfPTiAN Type : Bas-Rbubf ornambntino the Tomb or Suukh ABD-Bi/-QuaNAa, AT Thbbbs. however, still left in the hands of the Copts, and the Egyptian bureaucracy com- prises altogether more Christians than Mohammedans. The Coptic clerk, we are told by Mr. ^tanley Lane-Poole, is even " practically the judge of first instance, for it depends upon his favour whether the peasant's fV^^Tif-^SfSf." 844 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. suit over reaches the governor's or judge's ears at all, and this favour is only to be obtained by hard cash, so that unless the peasant has enough money about him to bribe the Coptic intermediary he never wins audience of the judge himself at all. The only plan is to ' square ' the scribe, and thus you obtain, not necessarily justice, but your suit. These Coptic scribes are foimd in every town, and at some places, such as Girgey, a large proportion of the population is Coptic. The black turban and kaftan would always distinguish them, but a glance at their face is generally enough. It is difficult to say exactly in what they differ in appearance from Mohammedans, but one is seldom wrong in identifying them. They constitute the lower official class, and are decidedly more corrupt and voracious than the Turkish governors themselves. There is an exceedingly good understanding established between the two orders of thieves, so far resembling that which exists between a local justice of the peace and the clerk of the justices, that it is really the clerk who knows and administers the law, while the great man takes the credit of it. Probably any other official class would prove as venal as the Coptic scribes — indeed the experiment has been tried with native Muslims without improving matters — but there can be no doubt that so long as our friend Girges or Hanna holds the clerkly inkstand and portfolio there will be no justice in the land." * The Fellahtn. :; The fellahin, or peasantry, belong, like the Copts, to the indigenous race, more or less modified by crossings. Those living away from the great cities of Cairo and ^Uexandria call themselves Aulad-Masr, that is to say, "Children of Masr," or " Egyptians." Like their ancestors, both Copts and fellahin are in general of mean height, 5 feet 6 inches to 5 feet 7 inches, with pliant body, straight and strong limbs. The head is of a fine oval shape, the forehead broad, the nose regular and rounded at the tip, the nostrils dilated, the lips full but finely designed, the eyes large, black, and soft, with the lids slightly raised outwardly. Most of the children are of sickly constitution and sullen temperament, with dull eyes, wan complexion, and full paunch. But such as escape the ravages of endemics grow up handsome and robust figures. The stranger wonders how such fine young men and women could have developed in the wretched hovels of these villages. Men are frequently met of really grand forms, recalling the characteristics of the sphinx, and most of the young women are endowed with an agreeable figure, a graceful and haughty carriage. There is no more pleasant sight than that of a young mother carrying her naked babe astride across one shoulder, as is their habit. In the rural districts the women do not veil themselves so closely as in the towns. Nearly all paint the lips a deep blue, and tattoo a floral device on the chin. Some even decorate the brow and other parts of the body in the same way. All but the abjectly poor also wear diadems and necklaces of true or false pearls, coins, or gilt discs, the whole family fortune being thus at times lavished on them. The fellah has, so to say, no other want except this superfluous wealth, which he •" Social Life in Egypt," pp. 62-3. JSt_ THE FELLAH'lN. 846 only to be ut him to self at all. necessarily id at some The black eir face is ippearance constitute than the erstanding lich exists t is really the credit tic scribes improving or Hanna nd." • race, more Cairo and Masr," or general of 'aight and Dse regular signed, the ost of the eyes, wan imics grow 'oung men Men are tie sphinx, acef ul and ig mother as in the 1 the chin. '. All but 9, coins, or lem. The which he bestows on his partner in life. His dwelling is a mere mud hut, a heap of clods dug out of t neighbouring ditch. His only dress is a pair of drawers, a blue cotton shirt, and the tarbush or felt cap. A few cakes of durrah, to which the wealthy classes add beans, lentils, onions, and dates, suffice to nourish bim. Peace Fig. 101.— ViLLAoa HvT8. he loves above all things, and in no other country where the conscription has been introduced are cases of voluntary mutilation of such frequent occurrence, the peasantry making* themselves cripples, maimed of one hand, or blind of an eye, in order to escape military service. The Egyptian is generally of a simple, kindly disposition, cheerful, obliging. 846 NORTH-EAST AFBIOA. and as hospitable as his misery will permit him. Even if he has recourse to fraud or falsehood, the usual weapons of the weak against their oppressors, he seldom succeeds. His little tricks and subterfuges are easily seen through, and frequently serve only to redouble the brutal treatment of his masters. The Copt is as a rule more adroit in this respect than the Mussulman fellahin ; for he has not only had to endure all kinds of hardships, like his Mohammedan neighbours, but has had over and above to cringe and play the hypocrite in order to escape from religious persecution. To avoid wholesale plunder he has had to conceal f lie few effects laboriously scraped together, carefully economising the fruits of a life condemned to ceaseless toil, stratag^n, and beggary. r , :; The Asabs op Egypt. i The Semitic element has been largely represented amongst the Egyptian popu- lations, even from times long anterior to the Arab conquest. Thus, according to Mariette, the indigenous communities settled ou the southern shore of Lake Menzaleh are possibly the direct descendants, with but little intermixture, of the Ilyksos, those " people of low race," who overran Egypt over forty centuries ago. Their type is said exactly to resemble that of the royal statues and sphinxes' heads discovered at San, the ancient Tanis, amid the alluvia of the lake. These supposed Asiatics inhabit the townships of Menzaleh, Matarieh, Salkieh, and the neighbour- ing villages. They are described as of tall stature and strong muscular development, with very broad features in comparison with the round cranium, large nose, prominent cheek-bones, very open facial angle, high forehead, intelligent glance and smile. According to Bayard Taylor, the descendants of the Hyksos would appear to be also very numerous in the Fayum depression. But to the Arab and Syrian Mussulmans who arrived imder the leadership of Amru, the population of Egypt is indebted for the largest proportion of its Semitic blood. Doubtless th^se Arabs have nowhere preserved themselves in a perfectly pure state amid the Egyptian communities; but they and their successors were numerous enough profoundly to modify the aboriginal element, especially in the towns, where all the Muslims who are neither Turks nor Circassians are uniformly spoken of under the general appellation of Arabs. On the Red Sea coast the Abs, the Awasim, the Irenat, and other more recent immigrant tribes from Arabia, live on fishing and the coasting trade. In the rural districts on the verge of the desert, many Bedouin tribes collectively known as Ahl- el-Wabar, or " People of the Tents," have proudly preserved their lineage intact, tracing their genealogies back to the early conquerors. The Arab will no doubt at times take a wife from the family of a fellah, but will never condescend to give him a daughter in return. Leading a half-nomad life between the reclaimed lands and the wilderness, he despises the wretched peasant condemned to ceaseless labour in the furrow. Should he himself abandon his wandering habifs, he would be at once looked upon by the nomad Bedouins as a mere fellah, like all the rest. But he usually dwells in the settled village communities only during a portion of the III llil ^ ./' THE ARABS OF EOYFl. 847 year, returning to the desert after harvest-tide. Thus their manner of life rather than their racial descent distinguishes the various sections of the population. Nevertheless after settling down as sedentary colonists, the children of the desert continue to enjoy great privileges, and for generations are exempt from the ccrv^e and conscription. At the same time the Bedouins of Egypt are by no means politi- cally independent. Separated into two distinct groups by the Nile valley, those of the Arabian desert, no less than their kindred of the Libyan oases, occupy districts easily commanded on all sides. Hence they are completely dependent on their neighbours for their supplies of all kinds. They are moreover divided into some 102.— A BxuouiN. fifty different tribes, several of which live in a constant state of hostility amongst themselves. No instance has yet been recorded of all the Bedouins of the desert making common cause in defence of their common freedom. One of the most powerful tribes of the Arabian desert is that of the Maazeh, or " Goatherds," who, according to Maspero, are the ancient Maziu Libyans assimilated to the Arabs within a recent period. They are the hereditary foes of the Ababdeh, who are of Beja stock, and who dwell to the south of Eossei'r, in the valleys of the Cataract range, and in Lower Nubia. The Ababdeh live mainly on milk and durrah, the latter eaten either raw or roasted, or made into unleavened cakes. Their chief 848 N0RTII-EA8T AFRICA. employment is stock-breeding and camel-driving. They keep comels, goats, and sheep, but never horses. Pasture is available only during the winter rains, so that in the dry season the herdsman has often to make long journeys to the hills in Fig. 103.— Arab Tribbs in Eoyft. Soal« 1 : 6,000,000. icr 25' £9' 54' L '. of Greenwich 196 Bliles. search of fodder. He is occasionally even compelled to diminish his flocks or hire himself out for a time to till the land in the Nile Valley, always returning to the steppe when it is again clothed with verdure. Although all are excellent dromedary riders, the people dwelling along the Nile are now more frequently employed than a^tfl, and iiH, so that e hills in THE AUAUDKUS AND TURKS OP EGYPT. 849 the Ahabdeh as camol-d rivers in large caravans But some still live close to the trade routes, and besides keeping? stock, earn somethinj? from the services of various kinds which they render to passing caravans. They are also stationed hero as road- watchers, receiving a little payment from their chiefs for this service. The Auabuehs and Turks of Egypt. The Ababdeh, wlio number about 30,000 altogether, are governed by an here- ditary " chief," who nominally controls and deposes subordinate sheikhs for the different districts. Although nominally a vassal of the Khedive he pays no tribute, but on the contrary receives a sort of subsidy from a portion of the road dues Fig. 104.— A ViLLAoa Shbikh. ?K wich cks or hire ling to the dromedary loyed than levied on the caravans which pass through his territory. The chief and his repre- sentatives, jointly with the tribal elders, settle all internal disputes, so that the Eg}'ptian Government has nothing to do with the clansmen, neither imposing taxes nor forcing them into the array. The chief is, however, personally responsible for the safe conduct of travellers along the caravan routes traversing his coimtry. He furnishes camels and guides, and living himself in the Nile Valley, is held a hostage for the security of the desert roads. Mohammed Ali introduced this system of hostages among the Bedouins, and the result of this wise measure has : :3t;: 'Z:- 860 NOBTU-EAST AFllICA. boon profound "peaco and abnoluto security in thoso inhoHpitable tractfl. Before this time, those and all other He.iouinH wore much drcadu>-' iiiig& THE "PLAGUES OF EOYIT." 861 I. Before rhoy mudc shunts and ) cro8S the All thia a the roud that of the )tiun urmy ing to the [R, hitherto 5,000, with iiuuher the itry where lese Archi- statementa mquest by [ways held capacity, aates from ff spring of lears to be mperfeotly oUows the swell as in Accurate But that lot become pitilessly llacedonian asty which at Cairo and in the other large towns bring up their children successfully, provided they are careful to obHorvo the ordinory laws of health. Infant mortality is even loHS amongst thum than amongnt the natives, whose poverty fur the most part pre- vents them from bestowing the necessary cure on their offspring.* Nevertheless the foreign colony, in which the men are far more numerous than the women, increases not by un excess of births over deaths, but only by immigration. At present the Kuropean element is represented in Kgypt, or at least in Alexandria and Cairo, by much more numerous communities than those of the Turks.t In 1882 it exceeded 90,000, and will probably acquire still further expansion now that the country has been placed under the protectorate of u Western power. Thanks to their greater intelligence, strength, and resources, the Euro- peans rather than the Turks are the true masters of the land. To this immigration of conquerors from the north corresponds that of the Nubian Bar&bra or Barbarins from the south. These Bar&bra, engaged almost exclusively in menial occupations, are the "Auvergnatsof Cairo." ^ The figures of Nubians carved on the ancient Egyptian monuments show that this immigration has been going on for ages. There remain to be mentioned the Ghagars, those Hindu tribes to whom the Spaniards and English have given the name of Qitunos and Gypsies, that is, " Egyptians," and who are still found in the Nile Valley. Amongst these wandering communities the men are chiefly horse-dealers, tinkers, mountebanks, and fortune-tellers. They also supply the tattooers and serpent- charmers, as well as the dancing dervishes, who are usually but wrongly supposed to be zealous disciples of the Prophet. Notwithstanding their Asiatic type and wild penetrating glance, by which the Gypsies are everywhere distinguished, they all claim to be pure Arabs, pretending to have migrated at first towanls West Africa, whence they returned to Egypt many centuries ago. The most " noble " tribe of the Ghagars even takes the name of Barmecides, though more commonly known by the appellation of GhawAzi, whence may possibly be derived the terms GabaohoB and Gavaches, applied in Spain and in the south of France to the Gitanos and even to all despised immigrants. Amongst the Ghaw&zi are chiefly recruited the dancing-girls, who are not to be confused with the more respectable class of the Almeh, or singing-women. or Spanish nselves for 1 trade, the L their own also settled en. 3,210,247; The "Plagues of Egypt." The numerous population of Eg3rpt, which has increased threefold since the beginning of the century, and which is progressing at the mean yearly rate of about 50,000, is a sufficient proof of the salubrity of the olimate.§ In Upper Egypt especially, where the atmosphere is not charged with moist exhalations, the climate is very healthy notwithstanding its high temperature. It is even * Mortality o( children under ten years in 1878 : Enropeims, 39-97 per cent. ; natives, 65-65 per cent, t Europeans in Eg^ypt, according to the census of 1882 : men, 49,054 ; women, 41,832. t Edmund About. •' Ahm^d le Fellah." $ Popultition of E^ypt in 1800, under the French occupation : 603,70 houses, or 2,514,400 souls, reckoning 8 per houde. A veragii mortality, 26 to 27 per lif^UO. ^^,. . • Kt. , HS2 NORTII-KART AKUI(!A. I bettor Htill in the dcHcrt, aa wuh nhown by the medical Htatidtics tnkon while the heavy worku wore in progresn for the conHtruction of the Suez ('unul. Egypt is even visited in winter by u number of Euro|)ean invulidfl, especially those suifering from nffectiouH of the chest. JJut the lurgo cities of Cuiro and Alexandria, where the streets are constantly swept by whirlwinds of dust, do not appear to be the best places of residence for i)er8on8 subject to these complaints. Here in fact consumption commits great ravages amongst immigrants from the Upper Nile, and every year carries off numerous victims, oven amongst the natives. In Cairo a seventh jmrt of the mortality is duo to pulmonary affections, an«l in the military hospitals as many as one-third of the deaths has sometimes been caused by tuber- culosis. Hut the maladies Europeans have most to dread are dysentery and, in certain parts of the delta, marsh fevers. Hepatitis, a " specific poisoning of the liver," almost unknown amongst the Mohammedans, who abstain from alcoholic' drinks, is very common among Europeans, owing to their less careful habits. The chief disorders of the natives are such as may be attributed to their abject poverty. Tht plague, formerly so terrible, and which in 1834 and 1835 carried off 45,000 persons in Alexandria, and 75,000 in Cairo, has ceased its ravages in the Nile Valley. Even cholera, which in 1883 converted Damietta into a vast hospital, now confines its periodical visitations td a very restricted area. But on the other hand anemia, caused by insufRcient nourishment, is everywhere endemic and fatal, especially to children. In no other country are blind and one-eyed persons so numerous as in Egypt. On landing at the quays of Alexandria the Btranger is at once struck by the effects of contagious ophthalmia amongst the crowds clamouring around him, and this first impression is confirmed by his sub- sequent observations and supported by statistical returns.* Poverty of blood, the reflection of the light on the white walls and on the surface of the river, the sudden changes of temperature, and especially the saline and nitrous dust formed by the decomposition of the Nilotic mud and raised in whirlwinds by the breeze, are the chief causes to which must be attributed these dangerous ophthalmic affections. Nevertheless the Bedouins of the desert are nearly all endowed with excellent sight. The flies, the " plague of Egypt," certainly contribute much to foster and aggravate these disorders. " When one sees the normal fly-ridden countenances of the Egyptian children, it is impossible to be surprised at the enormous proportion of blind or one-eyed adults. Ophthalmia arises in various ways ; but it is undoubtedly propagated by flies, and to the carelessness and pre- judice of mothers and the uncleanness of infants must be ascribed a good deal of its prevalence. The women think it is unlucky to wash a baby's face, and prefer to let him go blind all his life to removing the pestilential flies that cover his eyes like a patch of court-plaster."! Tliey lose even the strength to drive away the swarms of their tormentors, and patiently wait for sleep to relieve them from their sufferings. Leprosy, although less common than in Syria, has unfortunately not dis- * Proportion of persons sufferintc from ophthalmic disorders in Egypt, acrording to Amici : 1 7 per cent, t " 8m alcoholic' labits. their abject 835 carried vragea in the into a vast }a. But on ere endemic id one-eyed xundria the imongst the by his sub- f blood, the le river, the dust formed r the breeze, ophthalmiu idowed with ate much to 1 fly-ridden rised at the es in various 3S8 and pre- good deal of I, and prefer )ver his eyes ve away the n from their ely not dis- lid: 17{)ercent appeared from Kgypt. The Hpocios of gastric fovor known in the I'ast by fho nunio of (iniy in uIho very urovulont, while the elephant iuwiH of the ArabM frequently attacks the nativoH, ospcciiiUy in the delta. Another skin diHeaHo, the Ho-called " button " of the Nile, analogous to the " date " of Hagdad and the " button " of Aleppo and lliskra, is endemic in the country Most of the inhubitunts us well as strangers suffer from this sore once during life or during their rcHideneo in Egypt, although for the most part under a somewhat mild form of the niuludy. Religion. — The Mohammedans. Upwards of nine-tenths of the Egyptians are Mohammedans. But in a land where religions have succeeded each other like the alluvial deposits of the Nile, the people have not had time thoroughly to conform themselves to the official cult. Hence more than one observer has discovered in the legends and ceremonies of the fellahin traces of the religion which formerly attracted multitudes of wor- shippers to the vestibules of the great temples at Thebes and Memphis. Thus the nocturnal feast attended by the peasantry in the expectation of a visit from the golden cow in the ruine-','Sr^s^H«^p*^^^f^.^pSt? SOCIAL USAGES. 865 Br of inter- K), notwith- their con- s'" S6* of El-Azhar 3d the most ' differences V Coptic and tters of the alphabet. But if they are now Arabs in religion and speech, the Egyptians have become Turks in their political organisation, administration, and absence of a hereditary aristocracy. Social Usages. In their social institutions they have also to a large extent assimilated them- selves to their Arab and Turkish rulers. More readily even than by the Turks polygamy has been adopted, especially amongst the governing classes ; while mono- gamy is still universal among the peasantry. Divorce is more generally practised than in any other Mussulman country, and nearly half of the marriages are sflid to be followed sooner or later by repudiation. In certain Coptic circles it is customary to contract temporary alliances even for so short a period as a few weeks. Yet the priests bless these unions with the same solemnity as those of a permanent character. At the same time such temporary marriages may be made binding, should the contracting parties so desire. Cousins are frequently betrothed from the cradle, and marry on arriving at the age of puberty. Adul- tery is of rare occurrence in the Egyptian family. A curious account is given by Mr. Lawrence Oliphant of a Coptic wedding witnessed by him. "The ecclesiastic who performed the ceremony occupied evidently a very subordinate position in the Church, and his principal object seemed to be to finish the operation as speedily as possible, and get paid for it. He seated himself on a low chair in front of the happy couple, pulled a Coptic prayer-book out of his breast, and gave the signal to his attendants to commence operations, on which a man squatting on his heels behind the chair clashed a huge pair of cymbals, and half-a-dozen others in a like attitude set up a lugubrious chant in a loud nasal voice. Whenever they paused the women ranged on the benches burst forth in a shrill scream, with a quaver or ululation resembling the note of the screech-owl. It had a wild barbaric effect, as from time to time it broke in upon the uncouth chanting and clanging cymbals of the choir. Then the priest took up his part and read the service at a racing speed. All this time the men were talking and laughing loudly, babies were crying, and every now and then the priest would stop, apparently to hold a little conversation with those nearest to him on the topics of the day. Anything more irreverent or less like a religious ceremony it would be difficult to imagine. In the midst of it all the priest seized the bridegroom's left hand and put a ring on his little finger. After some more chanting, reading, screeching, and general conversation he took a phial, which I presumed contained holy water, and crossed the foreheads of the bride and bridegroom with its contents. Again after an interval he produced a black cord which he bound round the body of the bridegroom under his outer garment, and tied a piece of scarlet thread round his head, and did the same to the bride, who must long since have been nearly stifled. In spite of the rapidity with which the service was read, what with chanting and talking at least an hour elapsed before the priest seized the heads of the bride and bridegroom, pressing them 856 NOBTH-EAST AFRICA. I ii I m against one another and waving his hand over them, which I preanine was a blessing. He then untied the cords and threads, meaning I suppose that another spiritual knot had been tied, and then abruptly snatched the handkerchief out of the bridegroom's mouth and spread it over his own knees. For the first time there was a silence as of hushed expectation ; then some silver coins, amounting I shoidd say to about ten shillings, were dropped into the handkerchief, and the priest rose suddenly, put some of the money into his pocket, and proceeded to distribute the rest among the minor officiab, on which arose the . most furious clamour and dispute how the filthy lucre should be divided. But order was some- how at last restored and the bridegroom got up and walked to the door. The bride, however, seemed more difficult to deal with. Her mother and two or three other women seemed to be packing her up in some mysterious way against her will, rolling her about on the bench like some bale of goods. At last in the midst of her struggles a man, I presume her father, rushed in, put her on his shoulder, and carried her off, followed by the rest of the women."* „ ,,. Slavery. .--VSili .■^<*»%:• *.5V-- Officially slave-dealing is strictly prohibited in Egypt as well as in the dependent territory of the Upper Nile basin. In virtue of previous conventions made with England personal servitude should have already been completely abolished by Aug;ust 4, 1884, within the limits of the Ehedival possessions. But the articles of these treaties have remained a dead letter, and the representatives of Great Britain, now paramount in Egypt, have limited their action to the despatch of a circular recalling the law imposed on the £hedive. It seems pro- bable that they will observe in this respect the same reserve that Gordon did in Egyptian Sudan, leaving to the owners the absolute possession of the men and women acquired by capture or by purchase. If the slave-markets are closed the traffic goes on all the same, while the grandees always find the means of procuring eunuchs to look after the women of theii* harems. The maintenance of slavery in Egypt is necessitated by these very harems, whose mysterious regime could not be enforced with servants free to break their contracts at pleasure. At the same time it is certain that outside the palaces of the highest Mohammedan circles, domestic service is gradually replacing slavery. All Negroes who apply to the police for their " paper of freedom" obtain it, and may take up any industry in any place they choose. Thus the Western conquerors, like their Arab and Turkish predeces- sors, have introduced a new social organisation. " It should also be stated that in Egypt, as in most other Mohammedan countries, the slaveb are usually treated with great kindness. They are i-egarded as useful members cf the household by the head of the family, whose interest it is to look after their health, and make them feel as satisfied as possible with their position. The more content with their, lot, the more willing they are to work, and they thus g^radually learn to identify their interests with those of their masters. Hence they .j.;tr V , .,,j • "Tho Land of Khemi," p. 164 *<»«}. LAND TENUBE. 857 ume was a bat another chief out of le first time .mounting I ef, and the roceeded to aost furious r was some- door. The wo or three against her in the midst lis shoulder, L as in the conventions I completely issions. But presentatives ction to the b seems pro- ordon did in the men and ire closed the of procuring of slavery in < could not be he same time jles, domestic he police for in any place dsh predeces- ian countries, led as useful it is to look ;heir position, ind they thus Hence they soon give up all desire of returning to their tribal homes, and begin to despise their kindred, regarding them as savages and ' infidels.' • Hero we are well cared for by our kind father,' said some slaves of the Dinka nation from the country south of Sen&r ; 'he clothes us, and when meal- time comes we sit under his roof and eat our fill, and at night we have good bedding and shelter. When we desire it he gives us money to go to the bazaar ; and what belongs to him belongs to us. We are of his family. Why should we wish to return to the misery and incertitude of our early life P * "Such appears to be the general feeling of those in servitude. They become, so to speak, members of the household of their masters. They benefit largely by the civilisation, such as it is, that surrounds them. They form ties and affections. They marry and have children, and they become thoroughly identified with the country and surroundings of those who own them. "The female slaves, if really they can be called so, seem to sit as high at their dress tables as the lighter-coloured mistress whom they serve. Of ornaments they have plenty, silver and gold coins being woven into their innumerable thinly-plaited tresses. Amber, coral, and jasper necklaces fall in rows over their, when young, statuesque bosoms, here, as is the custom of the country, left untrammelled by robe or corset. " To sum up briefly, the curse of slavery is not the actual holding of slaves, but the misery caused by the destruction of villages, the severing of family ties, and the cruelties perpetrated in the work of capture. People are dragged miles and miles without water, chained by the neck ; in fact, the trails of the capturers may be followed by the skeletons of the captives left on the line of route. Hence, what- ever may be the kindness shown by the master to his bondman, all must rejoice that the days of slavery seem at last to be numbered in all Mussulman countries brought under European influences. The Qovemment of the Khedive, rightly influenced, is determined to stamp it out ; and the presence of English officers now in the service of His Highness in the distant provinces of the Sudan will undoubt- edly aid in effecting the extinction both of domestic slavery and of the slave traffic throughout Eastern Africa." * . ; , Land Tenure. ' ' The administration of landed estates is also being modifled through the inter- vention of Europeans in the internal affairs of the country. According to the strict letter of the Mussulman law the community of the faithful, represented by the beit-el-mdl, or public treasury, is the sole owner of the land, which can only be held temporarily by private persons such as mortgagees, who have come to inherit it by custom rather than legal right. However, this principle has long fallen into abeyance, and as in Europe, private proprietary rights have been established over a large portion of the Egyptian territory. Since this revolution, which allows the free exchange of land, its value has been greatly enhanced. The present « " With Hioks Puha in the Sudan." 858 NOETH-EAST APEICA. proprietors themselves, who no longer pay the taxes in kind, have certainly benefited by the new order of things. At the same time a new social class has been constituted, that of the agricultural proletariates, a multitude of hand to mouth labourers, who have no longer any share in the land, and who are obliged to accept employment on any terms in order to live.* The lands of dispossessed peasants, nearly all confiscated for non-payment of taxes, have enlarged the personal domain of the sovereign, of various members of his family, and of many high dignitaries of State. The Suez Canal Company has also become one of these large landed proprietors. All the estates that under sundry titles have fallen into the hands of Fig. 106. — Domains of the Dairah in thb Dblta. SmJ« 1 : iftOOfiOO. EitatM of the Kbediw. aoiCiiM. the khedival family are estimated at about one-fourth of all the arable land in Egypt. Between Assiut and Bedrashein nearly all the soil belongs to the Khedive. Another fourth of the land consists of the so-called ushuri, or " tithing^," held in absolute right by those cultivating them. On the other hand the lands of the poor, divided into small lots round the villages, and comprising, with the commercial possessions, about half of the country, are burdened with the karaj, a variable tax, which may be increased at the pleasure of the Government, but which still averages about one-fifth, as in the time of Joseph. On paying this tax the occupier of the * Average wages of the peasant labourer : fourpence to sevenpence, according to the season. u iiiiViii*if)W*il^^iT THE KHEDIVAL DOMAIN. 869 e certainly ial class has lid to mouth ed to accept ed peasants, )nal domain I dignitaries large landed the hands of land still remains none the less at the mercy of the State. He holds it only on sufEerance, nor are the rights of his heirs acknowledged until they show them- selves capable of cultivating the estate bequeathed to them and paying the imposts. If they want to change their karajieh lands to an absolute property, they can do BO only on condition of paying in advance a nix years' tax, either in a lump sum or by instalments. Besides a safe title, these anticipated disbursements relieve them in future from half of the land-tax. The tmkf ^wakuf) estates belonging to the mosques or schools will probably ere long change hands in part, if not altogether. The confiscation of this mortmain property might enable the Government to cover the present annual deficits. 5i* 50 The EHEDivAii Domain. Officially the largest landed estate in Egypt might seem to be that of the Khedive. But this domain, the so-called dairah-sanieh, having been mortgaged to European lenders since the year 1878, is administered by a commission, whose headquarters are not in Egypt, and the real owners are at present the European bankers. A considerable portion of the estate is rented to speculators, who sub-let to the peasantry. Certain parcels are directly ceded to the labourers ; but a large paii; of the dairah, which would certainly be brought under cultivation if in the hands of the fellahin, is allowed to lie fallow. For direct exploitation the creditors of the Khedive have recourse either to hired labourers, or to agents and " middle- men," who arrange with the village headmen for the hands required to till the land. Their work is remunerated by a regular pittance, or by personal gifts made to the gangers. All systems of payment are nicely graded, from the giatuitous corvee to the amount of direct wages freely determined between employer and labourer. But so many intermediaries have to receive a share of the profits in the cultivation of the khedival domain, so many interests claim compensation for their " disinterested " services in the " regeneration of JEgypt," that the revenues of these otherwise extremely fertile lands are frittered away to little over twenty shillings an acre. There is even a yearly deficit if to the current expenses be added the interest due on previous debts.* urable land in the Khedive, ings," held in [s of the poor, le commercial I variable tax, L still averages 3cupier of the the season. Irrigation — The Inundations of the Nile. To the contrast between the estates of large proprietors and the karajieh holdings of small owners corresponds in many places the contrast between the systems of irri- gation. In this respect it is necessary carefully to distinguish between the so-called * State of tlie Khedival domain at the date of the ceasion, October 31, 1878 : — Acres directly cultivated 192,660 „ leased 134,300 „ grunted to the peasantry 37,670 „ waste or l>illow . 82,360 446,880 I n | | i nln'W* llii 860 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. II I i srji and nili lands. The latter, as indicated hy the name itself, comprise all thoso tracts that would be flooded by the annual inundation but for the retaining dykes, as well as those reached through infiltration by the deep waters derived either from the main stream or from natural or artificial channels excavated at a slight depth below the surface of the ground. The lowest dykes derive their waters at a depth of about 13 feet below the cultivated lands, and are flushed only during the period of the inundations, remaining dry for the rest of the year. During the last century the whole of Egypt was watered exclusively by means of basins disposed at different elevations along both banks of the river, and receiving their supplies through the nili canals, and over three-fourths of the cultivated tracts in Upper Egypt are subject to the same method of irrigation. The sefi, that is, " summer " canals, all of recent origin, are excavated below the mean low-water level from 26 to 30 feet below the surface, so that they are reached by the stream even at the very height of the dry season. In Upper Egypt they are disposed parallel with the river and at a very slight incline, so as to bring them at once to the level of the lands to be irrigated. But in Lower Egypt, from which the system of irrigating basins has entirely disappeared, the sefi canals remain everywhere ot a lower level than the fields, to which the water must be raised by means of steam-engines, sakiehs, or shadufs. One of these sefi canals is the famous Mahmudieh channel, which derives its water from the Nile in order to irrigate the tracts skirting the desert as far as the city of Alexandria, and which serves at the same time as a great navigable highway. But having become partly choked by the mud, it is no longer deep enough to admit a regular current, hence has to be partly filled by means of steam-engines established at Atfeh, on the Bosetta branch of the Nile. The Damietta branch also feeds numerous summer canals, thanks to its relatively high elevation above the plains of the delta. The sefi system was first introduced under Mohammed Ali, when the cultivation of Jumel cotton was begun. By this method are still almost exclusively raised the larger and more important crops, such as sesame, sugar, and cotton, which are thus watered for three months continuously before the period of the ordinary inundation. So it happens that the small holdings have no share in the benefits reserved for the large estates irrigated during the period of low water. The high State functionaries and rich money-lenders alone derive any advantage from growing these larger industrial crops. Yet they are not the only contributors to the maintenance of the works, the cost of which is enormous, owing to the mud constantly accumu- lating in the ditches and gradually filling them up in many places. A single year would suffice to convert a sefi canal into a simple nili channel but for the numerous gangs of fellahtn employed for weeks and months together on the work of excavation. The sefi canals taken collectively represent a quantity of deposits about half as much again as that of the Suez Canal, and every year the amount of mud and earth required to be again displaced to keep open the dykes is not less than one-third of the original deposits. e all thosp ing dykes, ither from ght depth at a depth uring the ig the last .8 disposed ir supplies I in Upper ited below it they are per Egypt 18 to bring ?ypt, from ie& canals Br must be fi canals is in order to and which 9me partly ■ent, hence feh, on the us summer ta. cultivation raised the :h are thus nundation. red for the nctionaries lese larger itenance of ly accumu- single year ! numerous B work of of deposits amount of is not less I -;■'' '«:■': '.-x^^ ■ ^j i' f iP W ' "l^i ' " ' ' ."^ Pi l"'" V".-.-~,i.V ' K I V. N THE FORCED LABOUE OB COBVfiE SYSTEM. Thk Forced LAnoirR or Corv£e System. Ml For these vas* works the combined labour of the whole population is needed. As the daily labour of the fell&h scarcely sufKccs on the average to displace half a cubic yard of earth, or three-quar*'>r8 at the utmost under favourable conditions, the days of labour on these works must be reckoned at tens of millions. In 1872 Linant de Bellefonds estimated at 450,000 the number of hands employed on un average for two months every year in clearing out the sefi canals. Each felllih has, moreover, to attend to the nili canals of his commune, as well as to tho particular canal bringing water to his own fields. On the Mahmudieh Canal alone, Mohammed Ali employed 313,000 under the corvee system of labour. Nor is this uU. The exceptionally high inundation f the Nile might be the cause of widespread disaster were the dykes not carefully maintained, and even under dangerous circumstances raised to a higher level. In 1874 all the summer crops — sugar, cotton, durrah, maize — were threatened with complete destruction, and the whole wealth of the land would have been engulphed, had not the entire population, animated by a sense of the common danger, kept up an inces- sant struggle with the rising waters. For over a whole month 700,000 men laboured to repair and strengthen the embankments, so as constantly to make head against the swollen stream. Frequently a third of the population has been simultaneously engaged in this struggle with the Nile, and even in normal years tho Government calls out 160,000 men under the corv^ system, drawn in about equal proportions from Upper and Ijower Egypt. These constant efforts to adapt the land to the fluvial conditions have seldom a spontaneous character. Summoned under the corv^, and receiving from the authorities nothing but a shovel and a basket, the peasantry pre jent themselves in gangs at the works, preceded by their Sheikh-el-Beled, or village headman, and often accompanied by their women and children. Temporary encampments are established along the embankments, and the men enter the canal to dredge and bring up a little mud, gradually heaping it to a height of 30 or 40, and even 50 feet, over the side of the dyke. The women do the cooking — that is, prepare a few cakes of durrah in the fire;- the children tumble about in the sand, while the armed pickets tramp silently up and down the embankment. It is doubtless natural and reasonable that all the inhabitants should take their share in the maintenance of the canals. From the mud of the Nile springs all the wealth of Egypt, and in this respect the whole population has a common interest. The canals, also, which distribute the fertilising waters, and but for which the riverain peoples would be reduced to starvation, represent an amount of labour far beyond the resources of private enterprise. But, on the other hand, it seems only fair that this work, to which all hands contribute, should be really carried on in the interest of all. It should tend to promote the prosperity not only of a few large domains, but also that of the smaller village holdings. It should certainly not weigh as a heavy burden exclusively on the labourers who are too poor to purchase exemption or find substitutes for the onerous task. Nor should the wretched victims of the ■■■«'«W1©W?i«-s. P | i I I i^i wn ii . 1 'ij , I i i|i . i iM I . 1 1 >jjir i t i iii l . i fi i>)iii M i !ijMiiia)| « « - 862 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. corvdo, wallowing in the beds of the canulH, bo allowed to suffer hunger or bo deci- mated by epidemics, or be made to writhe under the lash of tin; cruel kurbash. The very monuments of Egypt have recorded for six thousand yeors the sad fate of tho fell&h, bent beneath his load of 'Jiud while the overseer stands flourishing the scourge above his head. The names may change, but this ancient form of slavery still HurvivoM. As Amru soid to the Caliph Omar, the Egyptian people " seem des- tined to toil only for others, without themselves deriving any benefit from their labour." Conservatism and Proores There are few other countries where the old usages, adapting themselves with difficulty to modern times, contrast more strikingly with the methods introduced by Western civilisation. While the ancient method of cultivation remains unchanged, and while the peasantry, regulating their work according to the yearly inundations, sow and reap always at tho same period, make use of the same implements, gather the same cereal crops, eat the same bread, modem agriculture draws the water by means of steam-engines directly from the river, cultivates the exotic plants of Indui and the New World, employs improved ploughs, reaping, threshing, and sifting machines. To manure their fields the peasantry still rely on the most precarious refuse from their farms and pigeon-houses, while the scientific cultivators import from Europe and America chemically analysed phosphates and guanos. Railways run close to the old mud hovels; skilfully constructed iron or steel bridges span the canals and the great branches of the Nile, while elsewhere the fellAh must swim or wade through the stream, his timio gathered like a turban round his head, or else crosses over seated on a mat of palm-leaves floated on inflated skins or calabashes, or on a string of tufted foliage, which he propels by converting his shirt into a sail. And, again, on the very sands and marshes skirting the wilderness, lighthouses with electric burners, the " suns of the Christians," as the natives call them, light up between the Mediterranean and Rod Sea the great navigable highway which, even in these days of colossal undertakings, stands out as one of the most stupen- dous works of human industry. But amid all these strange contrasts between the old conservatism and the new ideas, the clearest signs of material and intellectual progress are everywhere conspicuous. "Nothing," remarks the distinguished traveller, Charles Beke, " surprised me more in my present journey, though I have visited Egypt frequently since 1840, than the many changes for the better that were observable in the whole country. When one has passed the Mareotis Lake, and the barren district west of the Rosetta arm of the Nile, the land presents most distinct evidences of higher and more extended culture. " I was told that in this part of Egypt, where in 185G only 100,000 acres of land were under cultivation, now double that extent is planted. The cotton harvest is now just over, and the fields are being ploughed. Once I aw what I have never seen before, a camel drawing the plough. Far and wide there waves a green sea of cornfields or of rich pasture-land, on which cattle, asses, sheep, and goats •» *'H»f«!p*wip(A'*" THE SUEZ CANAL. 86» or bo (leci- cl kurbaRh. ho sod fate inHhing the 1 of Hlavery " soem do8- from their iselves with Produced by unchanged, aundations, mts, gather le water by nts of Indui and sifting I precarious tors import Bailways ^8 span the list swim or ead, or else calabashes, ihirt into a lighthouses them, light way which, ost stupen- nd the new jverywhere Ties Beke, frequently t the whole rict west of 8 of higher 00 acres of ton harvest lat I have p-es a g^een , and goats are grazing. TrooH have boon plnntod, and not only along the rouds ; somo placon have been sot ao thickly as ulmoHt to apiK^ur like little forests. Tho route across the delta, on tho clear sunny day on which I travcUiHl, was indeed chnniiing, and I had often to remind myself that I was really in Egypt, so totally changoil was the picture ; for here and there, also, tho tall chimney of some manufactory was to bo seen rising abovo the trees or over tho villages. Egypt will soon belong only geographically to Africa ; in everything else it is becoming European. " The condition of tho lower classes, also, shows a marked improvement. Ophthalmia, perhaps tho most painful scourge of Eg^pt, is now neither so wide- spread nor so intense as formerly ; and if the people are not better fed than they used to be, they have at least sufficient for their wants. Those inhabiting tho towns are remarkably improved. In Cairo there are not nearly so many barefooted people as formerly ; and they are not contented with slippers, but wear European boots. The fellahs, or peasants, also are decidedly improved. Their mud huts are better built, and especially better roofed ; indeed, here and there peasant houses of quite European type are now to be seen. " No doubt this rapid progress in Egypt has its shadow side. Like the children of Israel of old, the people do not work for themselves, but are in heavy bondage almost beyond their powers. Yet this development under high pressure is undeniably to the advantage of tho country. The greatest and most important, because most universally active change, is certainly that of the improvement in the climate, brought about by the more extended cultivation, and especially by the numerous plant&tions of trees. Egypt is in a fair way to overturn its proverbial rainlessness. In Alexandria rain now falls even to excess ; and Cairo, of which the prophet of all travellers, Miirray, in his handbook, still maintains that it enjoys at most five or six light showers in the course of the year, had to record not fewer than twenty-one such in the past year. I myself experienced a rainy day there quite as wet as any known in England. The consequences of it were thot the unpaved streets were covered ankle-deep with mud, and all traffic except that in carriages was at an end. " Naturally the ignorant Arabs ascribe these changes to supernatural agencies, and since the year corresponds' with that of the ascent of Mohammed Ali to the throne, the witchcraft it; supposed to emanate from him and his dynasty." : :. i*. ' The Suez Canal. The channel between the two seas, after having perhaps existed as a natural artery for a short period during quartemary times, is known to have been indirectly restored by the Pharaohs of the nineteenth dvnasty, over thirty-three centuries ago. A tradition recorded by Strabo attributes the construction of the canal to Sesostris. Herodotus also tells us that Nekos, son of Psammaticus, began near Bubastes a canal which skirted the quarries, that is, the hills now known as the Jobel-Mokattam, thence trending eastwards to the Red Sea. A hundred and twenty thousand hands had already perished on these works of canalisation between the Nile and the coast. «e4 NORTH- KAHT AFRICA. m when thoir further prognwH wan iirroHttMl by an oraolo which dcdarofl that thoy woro Innng executed " for the benefit of a barbarian." And it was, in fact, a foreigner, Kinpf Darius of PefHin, who opentttl the com- munication between the Nile and the Gulf of Arsinoe, consequently between tho Mediterranean and lltxl Sea, by a well-constructed canal, wide enough, says IlerodotuH, to allow two triremcH to pass each other in mid-Htreain. According to DiodoruH SiculuH, tho same king oven entertained the idea of cutting a canal from Hea to Hoa, between the Qulf of Pelusium and tho Red Hea. The works seem to have even been begun, for tho banks, some 16 feet high, are still to be seen of a ditch from 160 to 180 or 200 feet wide, running from Lake Timsah by the Qisr towards El-Kantara. But it was feared that the " waters of tho Red Hea, standing at a higher level than the plains of Egypt," would floo^l all the land, and for thia reason the works woro discontinued. Monuments bearing inscriptions in four languages — Persian, Medo-Scythian, Assyrian, and Egyptian — were erected on the banks of tho canal near Suez. These inscriptions record the fi-uitless attempts made by Darius to accomplish the work successfully carried out in our days. The fear entertained by the Persian monarch — a fear still shared by most engineers down to the middle of the nineteenth century — is all the more easily understood when it is considered that the mean level of the southern waters does in fact exceed that of the Mediterranean at Pelusium. At ebb there is scarcely any perceptible difference, but at flow the Red Sea is considerably higher, in exceptional cases as much as 90 or 100 inches. In the time of Darius the current setting north- wards in consequence of this difference of level would have even been stronger than at present, for the channel was narrower. But the old canal derived from the Nile gradually silted up, and the ditch cut across the isthmus became choked with sand and mud. Nevertheless the memory of the work accomplished did not perish, and more than one Egyptian ruler continued to regard the project of uniting the two seas as an enterprise glorious beyond all others. Ptolemy II. is said to have restored the canal, and, arguing f rbm certain somewhat obscure passages in Strabo and Oiodorus, some writers have even asserted that the cutting was effected directly from gulf to gulf. Skilfully constructed sluices gave access to vessels without flooding the surrounding low-lying tracts. However, the trafiic between the two marine basins was doubtless insufficient to pay for the maintenance of the banks and sluices, and it has been supposed that in the reign of Cleopatra the navigable highway must already have been again closed. At least, according to Plutarch, the Egyptian queen endeavoured to have her ships transported overland to the Red Sea, in order to escape, with all her treasures, from Octavius after the battle of Actium. Nevertheless it is quite possible that the canal may even then still have existed, if not permanently at least during the Nilotic inundations. The time when she wanted to escape happened to coincide with the period of low-water, when the canal would have been dry. After the Ptolemies the Roman conquerors took up the dream of uniting the two seas. Trajan, who tried his hand at so many great enterprises, set to work also on this project, and under the reign of Hadrian boats were navigating the j^ i i i T » j < H »i | pi TUE HUEZ CANAL. B66 that ther tho ooiit' tweon tho ugh, says ionling to anal from :8 seom to seen of a tho Qisr , Htanding id for this i8 in four tod on the attempts ays. The engineers mderatood act exceed terccptible onal cases ng north- )nger than ) ditch cut le memory tian ruler ie glorious i, arguing riters have Skilfully low-lying usufficient posed that )een again ed to have th all her t is quite ;ly at least ippened to iry. initing the et to work gating the •o-coUod " River of Trojan," excnvotod, llko tho older river of Nokon, betwoon tho Nile, tho TiiUMith, und tho Hitter I^ukoN, iutohh tho donort /.ouo skirting tho iiriiblo lundH. An fiotronix! huH ohHt^rvofl, tho oxploitution of tho grout [Hirphyry quarrioN ut Mount (iiiudiim would have l)een uniiitolligiblo, uhIohn Moriio wutorwuy oxiHtod botweon tho twa and tho river for forwarding tho hugo nionolithN oxtractod from the mountain. Thoy could not certainly huvo Wn traiiMportod to the Nile Valley over tho intervening hills and ro<;kH of thi^ Arabian range. Like most ol tho works oxocutorti«i*>ii.j.i«.v'-«(rt«f*'fcA«.' 860 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. survive of the former Egyptian, Homan, and Arab works. In some places, and notably near Suez, the dykes, built with such hard stone that the Arabs take them for natural rocks, rise here and there some 18 or 20 feet above the plains. Fig. 108.— Suez in the YExn 1800. Scale 1 : 860,000. 291 26 27°55' [ of Green wi c*^ 27VV' Sandi expand at low water. V.^ .' ^ ;' •- 6MiiM. It is probable that to a barrage, the remains of which are still visible, the ground- sill of Gisr owes its Arabic name of " dyke." While the mud and sands were obliterating the monuments of the Pharaohs, Ptolemies, Trajan, and Amru, the Sultans of Constantinople, after the reduction of Egypt, frequently entertained the idea of renewing the worka of ^eVF predecessors. me places, the Arabs ) the plains. i ■.■■■■A. i ■50 •23 ■SB the groimd- e Pharaohs, reduction of )redeces8ors. THE SUEZ CANAL. 867 But the project did not take definite shape till the time of the French expedition. With the expedition came a number of distinguished naturalists, eager to accom- plish great things, and one of the greatest to them seemed the idea of reuniting the two seas. Lep^re and other savants forthwith set to work to survey the surface of the isthmus, and accurately determine the conditions imder which the enterprise might be successfully undertaken. Unfortunately the results of this exploration were vitiated by a fatal error. Lep^re fancied he had found the level of the Red Sea nearly 33 feet higher than that of the Mediterranean. Under the influence of this serious miscalculation he allowed himself to be influenced by the illusion of the ancients, who feared the low-lying tracts on the Mediterranean coast would be engulfed by the waters of the Red Sea were the project carried out. He accordingly gave up the idea of cutting a direct maritime canal, although recognising how greatly the trade of the world would be benefited by coimecting the two basins by a deep channel not subject to the alternative rise and fall of the Nile waters. Falling back on the scheme of the Pharaohs, he proposed to construct a canal, from 14 to 16 feet deep, running from Cairo to Suez, in four sections at four different levels, two filled with the sweet water of the Nile, two with the saline water of the Red Sea. This canal was further to be completed by a navigable highway flowing from the head of the delta to the port of Alexandria. Being accessible only to river craft, the canal projected by Lep^re could have been used for inter-oceanic traffic only during the periodical inundations of the Nile. The French occupation of Egypt was too short for the work to be undertaken. But the idea of separating Acia and Africa .by a new Bosphorus was destined never again to be laid aside. It even became the dogma of a new religion, the Saint -Simonians having introduced it into their " articles of faith." Their jour- nals were already discussing the question in the year 1825, and when several members of the sect had to leave France, the study of the Suez Canal was one of the chief reasons that induced them to turn towards the Eaat Later on, when the Saint-Simonian religion had ceased to exist, but when most of its former adherents had become men of influence in the commercial world, the scheme found its most zealous champions amongst them. At last public opinion became so clamorous, that it was found necessary to undertake a fresh survey, in order to verify br set aside that of Lepdre, which Laplace and Fourier, besides many other savants, had always regarded as erroneous. In 1847 a European society was instituted, and under the direction of the engi- neers Linant, Talabot, and Bourdaloue, accurate levelling^ were taken across the isthmus, from Suez to Pelusium. Henceforth it was once for all placed beyond doubt that, apart from the inequalities caused by the higher tides in the Gulf of Suez, the surface of the two seas presented but slight discrepancies of level. The operations of the Bourdaloue survey were again checked in the years 1853, 1855, and 1856, the results being each time almost identical.* . ; * Mediterranean at Tineh, on the Giilf ot Pelurium : — Low WHter, O'O metres ; high water, 0*88 meties. Red Sea at Sues : — Low water, 0-7414 metres ; high water, 2-0886 metres. 868 N0ETH.EA8T Ai'BICA. After the settlement of this important point in physical geog^phy, nothing more apparently remained to be done before proceeding to construct a direct canal across the isthmus. But the first project, presented by M. Paulin Talabot, one of the engineers engaged on the survey, proposed the construction of a canal from Suez through Cairo to Alexandria. This scheme, which has been recently again adopted by some English engineers in opposition to the present undertaking,* involved the construction of locks and sluices, in order on both sides to reach the level of the Nile above the head of the delta. It would have also been necessary to provide for a system of flood-gates, to resis^^ and regulate the fluvial inundations, besides a tow-bridge across the Nile between the two sections of the canal, in order Fig. 109. — PuoFOBED Frbshwater Canal fhom Svez to Alsxandiua. Scale 1 : 8,600,000. 30°co t . of ureernvich J2°so- COMilea. to tow the vessels from one side to the other. As a highway of navigation, the inferiority ui this canal, winding through Lower Egypt, compared with that across the isthmus, dispensing with sluices and nearly three times shorter, is self-evident. But the primary object of this canal, which would have been 240 miles long, was the irrigation of the delta rather than traffic. The interests of navigation and irrigation however being different, and even antagonistic, seeing that shipping requires a low level, while cultivators naturally seek to raise the bed of their artificial streams as high as possible, it would be a mistake to construct a canal * John Fowler and Denjamin Bnker, Ctnturif, No. 71, January, 1833. A Sweet-water Ship<;'S '^^SdilMu.. phy, nothing direct canal dabot, one of 1 canal from ecently again indertaking,* to reach the een necessary L inundations, anal, in order inij'lit iO' ja°ao' navigation, the nith that across is self-evident, miles long, was navigation and ; that shipping le bed of their mstruct a canal Egypt," NinttMnth i ! ^ r TIIE SUEZ CANAL. 869 for this twofold purpose. Should the riverain tracts of the delta ever he enclosed by a circular artery, this canal will probably be utilised exclusively for irrigation and the local traffic. The firman grunting a concession to pierce the isthmus directly from sea to sea, wa9 at last signed in the year 1854. While signing this document, the Sultan was himself incredulous as to the possibility of executing the work, and even among the engineers engaged on the vast undertaking, many were wanting in the confidence required to stimulate their efforts. But Ferdinand de Lesseps, in whose favour the firman had been signed, was a man of strong faith and tenacious will. He was discouraged neither by financial difficulties, nor by faint-hearted friends, nor yet by the secret or avowed opposition of adversaries. Amongst these adversaries was the British Government, fearing the opening of a direct route to India, of which it was not sure of always holding the key. Yet it was compelled in its turn to acknowledge itself vanquished, and on November 17th, 1869, a whole fleet of steamers followed in gay procession, bearers of the Khedive's invited guests from Port Said to Lake Timsah. Fifteen years had sufficed to complete this colossal undertaking. But to bring it to a successful issue, new engineering methods and new mechanical contrivances had to be devised. A sum of nearly £19,000,000, nearly half subscribed in France, had been expended, apart from the numerous substantial services con- tributed by the Egyptian Government, such as concessions of land, the erection of lighthouses, harbour dredgings, pecuniary advances without interest, gangs of labourers under the corvee system, representing at least a capital of some £4,000,000. The number of natives engaged on the works averaged about twenty thousand. , This great highway, a veritable marine strait, which is visited by sharks and cetaceans, and where are now intermingled the various flora and fauna of the Mediterranean and Red Sea, presents dimensions which at the time seemed prodigious, but which are already acknowledged to be inadequate. The canal, which is 98 miles long from sea to sea, and from 200 to 330 feet wide between the banks, has a depth nowhere less than 26 feet, and in some places nearly 28 feet. Dredges are constantly engaged, clearing out the sand and mud, which the wash of passing steamers causes to accumulate on the bottom. Without including these subsequent dredgings, which amount to about 21,000,000 cubic feet yearly, the excavations represent a mass estimated at 2,910 millions of cubic feet, equal to a pyramid 1,100 yards square and 830 feet high. From a mere lagoon, Lake Timsah, that is, of the " Crocodiles," from which, however, these animals had long disappeared, has been transformed to an inland sea. The basin of the Bitter Lakes has also received from the Red Sea a volume estimated at seventy billions of cubic feet ; the vast salt-beds formerly occupying this depression are being gradually dissolved under the influence of the currents setting alternately north and south. The canal presents a superb spectacle, especiaUy at El-Gisr, between the two lines of dunes rising on either side some 50 feet above the surface. And it is difficult to suppress the feeling of wonder 24— AF. '■•':Ti 870 NORTH*EAST AFEICA. m produced by tho scene as viewed from the Port Said lighthouse, commanding as it does a panoramic prospect of the city rising above tho sands, the vast harbour with its wet-docks and side basins crowded with shipping, the white piers disap- pearing in the distance amid the blue waters of the Mediterranean, and in the interior those huge steamers, like floating palaces, gliding away between the surrounding sand dunes as if propelled by some magic force across the isthmus. The traffic of the Suez Canal has developed more rapidly than its constructors expected. Without the aid of tugs, sailing vessels are unable to navigate the Bed Sea in either direction, either against the northern winds or against those from the south blowing directly into the gulf. But for the Indian traffic sails have been superseded by steam ; ships of a special build have even been constructed 'I Fig. no.— Lakk TiiWAii. ^ : > ■ \ 1 ■ Scale I: 1,000,000. Uii:L>il!■•■^^^^•^^V^^^^■i;^^■^■"^^^'•''■^^V^"•'^'.;^'^*'^"•' :'.•"•*/ •T^B lll.,lil,i.l.'. . Jl.l 50' IC c. . of GrBemA-icK 68'eO' SHUe for this inter-oceanic service through the canal and the Red Sea, and the mean tonnage continues to increase from year to year. During the year 1883, a solitary sailing vessel passed from sea to sea, whereas on an average ten steamers every day availed themselves of this route. Hence the necessity for enlarging this navigable highway has already arisen. Certain sharp turnings will also have to be got rid of, as has already been done at El-Gisr, and several other improvements will have to be made, such as the deepening of the channel, the completion of the stone facing to the embankments where the shifting sands are too easily eroded by the wash, the construction of ports in the riverain lakes, and especially a general widening of the whole canal in order to be able to dispense with the sidings, or " shimting stations," which now ' *!i!^:iggif; ••S.i^^Mlj':. i ( ngULyii| l j| i ||HH|i^LHiilJ l j a^ m mmm THE SUEZ CANAL. 871 landing as it irast harbour piers disap- 1, and in the between .the isthmus. . constructors navigate the (gainst those 1 traffic sails a constructed 501 54' ^^••v^ 501 iMri occur at intervals of 6 or 8 miles along the route. The original projectors had anticipated a yearly traffic of six million tons; but provision must now be made for a double and even fourfold movement at no distant date. It is proposed to treble the width of the present channel, so that steamers may pass each other without slacking speed, and also to prevent the whole traffic from being blocked by the grounding of a single vessel, as so frequently happens at present. England, which formerly opposed the opening of the canal, is the very power now most urgent in calling for its enlargement. But the results afford a ready explanation of this change of attitude. The canal has in fact become an almost exclusively British highway, and an eighth part of the whole trade of Great Britain, representing a value of over £80,000,000, passes through the Isthmus of <^:. Fig. 111. — Qbeat Intbhnatioxal Uovteb of thb Old WoKLn. Boale 1 : 170,000,000. ' 8,000 HflM. and the mean 883, a solitary oers every day already arisen, ady been done Q, such as the embankments jonstruction of whole canal in 1," which now Suez. The British Government has also become one of the chief shareholders, and since the occupation of Egypt it practically controls this route, which it may open or close at pleasure, as was seen before the battle of Tel-el-Kebir, when all traffic was for a short time suspended, in spite of the conventions guaranteeing the neutrality of the passage between the two seas. Thus Great Britain, which feared lest the marine route to India might fall into the hands of her rivals, has succeeded in securing its possession at least for the present. At the same time, according to the terms of the international convention concluded in 1885, the canal is hence- forth declared an open highway under the joint guarantee of the European powers. It is thus absolutely free to the ships of all nations, and in time of war even to those of belligerents; which, however, cannot remain in the canal for a 872 NOBTn-EAST AFRICA. poriod of moro than three days, nor during thoir stay commit any acts of hostility against the vessels of their antagonists. The terms of this important international agreement are briefly resumed in the subjoined scries of articles, adopted after much discussion by the Suez Canal Com- mission: — "Article 1. The Canal shall remain open both in time of peace and war to merchant and war ships without distinction of flags. The contracting parties undertake to place no obstacle in the way of free passage through the Canal either in time of peace or war, nor to blockade the Canal, nor to subject it to any other measure of war. Article 2. As a sweetwater canal is recognised to be indispens- able for a maritime canal, cognizance is taken of the Khedive's obligations to the Suez Canul Company in that respect, and the Powers are pledged not to compromise in any way the safety of the sweetwater canal. Article 3. All parties agree not to damage the material for building and repairing purposes. Article 4. It is agreed that no fortifications shall be erected on such points as could command or threaten the Canal and serve as the basis ior offensive operations, nor shall any such point bo occupied by troops. The maritime entrances to the Canal, as also the territorial waters, shall be excluded from all military operations. Article 5. Although in time of war the Canal will be open to the passage of the belligerent fleets, no acts of hostilities and no measure preparatory to the same shall be carried out in the Canal or in the territorial waters of Egypt, even should Turkey be one of the belligerents. No troops, provisions, ammunition, nor war material shall be landed there. The passage of ships must be as rapid as possible, and the stop- page at Port Said or Suez must not exceed twenty-four hours. There must be an interval of twenty-four hours between the departure of ships belonging to nations at war. Articles 6 and 7 refer to captured vessels, which will be treated as belonging to belligerents. For all damage to the Canal or to the material belonging to it, the Power whose ship has caused the damage will be held responsible, though the right of appeal is reserved. Article 8. No Power will be entitled to have more than one war ship at a time in the Canal, and more than two at Port Sa'id and Suez. Article 9 provides for the rights of the Sultan and of the Khedive. The measures required for the defence of Egypt in case of need must not affect the safety of the Canal. Article 10. A Commission composed of representatives of the signatory Powers at London, on March 17, 1885, to whom shall be added an Egyptian delegate with a consultative voice, will sit under the presidency of a special Turkish delegate, and make arrangements with the Suez Canal Company for the enforce- ment of the present regulations for the Canal navigation and police. The said Commission shall, within the limits of its attributions, see to the execution of the present treaty and submit to the Powers proposals for securing its observance. It is understood that the Commission shall not infringe the Sultan's rights. Article 11 prescribes that Egypt shall within the limits of its rights take measures to ensure respect for the treaty, and in case of need shall appeal to Turkey and to the signatory Powers. Article 12 stipulates that none of the signatory Powers shall seek territorial or commercial advantages or privileges of any kind in connection ; i"» i ,»■ ■Hi lfi' TOPOOBAPUY— MAILVTTA— rilllJE. 919 ny octs of lined in the ]3unal Com- and war to ;ing parties !yanal either o any other B indispens- lions to the compromise es agree not ;le 4. It is command or lall any such as also the Article 6. 9 belligerent ill be carried arkey be one rial shall be nd the stop- ) must be an ig to nations as belonging inging to it, , though the o have more lid and Suez, lie measures safety of the he signatory an Egyptian ocial Turkish the enforce- ;e. The said uution of the jervance. It s. Article 11 res to ensure Y and to the Powers shall in connection with the Canal. Article hi provides for the Sultan's rights, and, finally, the con- cluding article is to the effect that the Powith will communicate the treaty to those States which have not signed it, and will invite them to endorse it." Topography. While new towns are springing up in Egypt, the ancient cities are crumbling to dust. Most of the larger centres of population stand at some distance from the ruins marking the sites of former capitals. But those ruins, far more interesting than most of the modem towns, still relate the history of Egyptian culture. In many places the hovels of the fellahin, small cubical blor^ks of brick or mud covered with a reed roof or a terrace of beaten earth, are almost lost in the shade of mighty gateways and peristyles of temples. Since the scientific exploration of Eg}rpt haa been actively begun, fine monuments have been rescued from the sands in which they had long been buried ; but many others have disappeared for ever. The salt- petre with which the sands and alluvial dusts are impregnated gradually corrodes the hardest stones of these buildings ; treasure-seekers demolish their walls ; while still greater destruction is caused by the peasantry, who make the sebakh, an excellent composition, by mixing the dust of the ruins with earth. The limekilns have consumed layer after layer of the temples built with limestone, so that the monuments of sandstone, which can scarcely be utilised for modern structures, have suffered least from these destructive processes. The Egyptian villages bear the most diverse names, according to the origin of their inhabitants, or the tenure of the soil. Thus occur such names as Nahieh, Kqfr, Ezheh, Nag, Abadieh, Memhat, and Nazleh, this last term, which means "settlement " or " colony," being applied to villages built by Arab nomads who have become culti- vators. The villages also frequently shift their sites. oT^ing to the inundations, or the opening of some fresh canal. In the same way their names often become changed, according to the social status of the proprietors by whom they are pur- chased. Yet in these villages are still to be read the records of ancient Egypt. The country has been compared to a palimpsest or mediaeval parchment, on which the Bible has been written above Herodotus, and the Koran above the Bible. In the towns the Koran is the most legible, while in the rural districts Herodotus reappears.* ;~ Mahatta — Phil^. Classical Egypt begins at the First Cataract, at the spot where the Nile craft from Nubia still land their cargoes of g^ums, ivory, and ebony, in the shade of the palms and sycamores fringing the Mahatta beach. At Mahatta, which stands on the right bank, the river is still smooth as a lake ; but towards the north we already perceive the black reefs, amid which wind the foaming currents of the rapids. But before plunging into this labyrinth of falls, the sluggish waters w^sh the shores of a cluster of verdant isles, one of which is the famous Phila, the llak of the * Lucy Duff Gordon, " Letten from Egypt." 874 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. »<:£ (I *i e EgyptianH, the holy iHhind, whither wuh transforrod the tomb of Oniris from Abydos. Of all solemn outliH the muHt Huletiin wum that Rwom l)y the " Oairia who dwells at PhiloD." It is a small island, Ions than half a mile in circumference ; but its out- lines descril)o u charming oval, and there is no more graceful monument in all the land tlian the kiosk on tlie (■u^rul capitalo bom. This t bttvo been reliefs uor d it occupies ed ttftor tbe iptions tbun lie on their idios through ed " Rosetta triumph and 18 found the secret of the 1 monument, in England.* leven, records ind of Desaix tunnel passed it of Biggeh, 1 at a higher the Cataracts :n. Here the purposes, and )aigns of 1884 tt centuries to ous languages recognised, as •om the attacks t bank of the slopes of tbe less numerous on the beach 1. The bazaar d beasts, ivory. wood, precious drugH, and other wares brought down lioni Nubia and the Upper Nilo. Tho ncighl)ouring date grovfs also supply abundant cargoes for tho boats proceeding to Cairo and tho delta. Under its Arobic form of As-SuAn, tho old Egyptian name of Sudn hos Hurvivod for ncorly five thouwind years, and under its Greek form of Syone had already be- come famous in classical times. To geologists it recalls tho granite and " Hvonito " quarries, which have been excavated to the south of tho city for a spuco of nearly Fig. 112.— AsiUAN AKD THB FlMiT CaTARACT BBroHl THI OPBMINO Of THl BaILWAT. Boala t : 800,000. 32°45 't . of Greenwich 58*55 BMOa*. four miles. Here is still to be seen an obelisk 120 feet long, not yet entirely detached from the rock. Astronomers also are reminded by this name of the experiments here carried out by Eratosthenes, over twenty-one centuries ago. Assuming that Syene stood exactly on the line of the tropic of Cancer, which, how- ever, is not strictly correct,* and finding that at Alexandria the shadow of the gnomon stood at a fiftieth on the day of the summer solstice, from these data Eratosthenes deduced the degree of the earth's curvature, and consequently so far « Latitude of Assuan, 24° 6' 23". i 876 NOUTII-EAST AFBICA. (l(>tcrmlniHl the ditnciiMions of tlv planet. IIo did not tnko the direct mcnHuromont of tho distanco Ijotwocn Syone und Al«>xundriii. litit the Kj^yiiliiiu iHMtplo, who know HO woll how to turn their oditicoH toward, l* "^3 "'H". snuHt have aluo known not only tho diHtancc, hut also tho oxutrt powt . •* *''•'"•<> I'Iucoh. Ifenro tho C(tninion oMtiinuto accepted hy the Greek OHtrononiv . iiinBi have come very clone to the truth. If the rneuHurement of tho meridian made by hir- woh in Egyption feet, as in probable, his calculation waH wrong by scarcely a sixty-fifth. Tho real length of tho arc of the meridian, between Alexandria and the parallel of Syene, is exactly 787,7(50 metres, while tho measurement of Eratosthenes gave 810,000 metres.* Elephantine Island, which faces Assuan on the other side of a channel 500 feet wide, was also the site of a famous city. Here stood Abu, the "City of the Elephant," which afterwards, during the Greek and Roman periods, apjiears to have been tho great emporium for the ivory brought down from the Upper Nile. But scarcely any of its ancient monuments have survived to the present day. Its temples were demolished in 1822, to supply building materials, and little is now to be scon except a Nilometer restored in 1870, and some heaps of ancient pottery on which the custom-house officers of the Roman epoch used to scratch their receipts. On the ruins now stand two villages of Bar&bra Nubians. But Elephantine, the " Verdant " Isle of tho Arabs, still possosses its magnificent date groves, whose brilliant foliage presents u striking contrast to the block rooks commanding the issue of tho cataract. ft 1 i '!j ' Ombos — Edfu. " %^ The site of the ancient city of (hnbos is now indicated only by the hamlet of Kdm-Ombo, situated on the west bank, and by the ruins of two temples dedicated to two rival dieties, Horus, god of light, and Sebek, the genius of darkness. But the stream is continually eating away this bank, with its sanotoaries and the sand encumbering them. The defile of Silsileh, or the "chain," below £dm-Ombo, would be the most convenient point for constructing a barrage to raise the level of the river and divert a portion of the current to the irrigation canals. According to the proposed plan, the main channel would skirt the foot of the Libyan range, watering all the now barren tracts which stretch west of the Bahr-Tusef. But, as elsewhere pointed out, there are many serious objections to this scheme, which, if carried out, would probably have the effect of throwing out of cultivation some extensive districts along both batiks of the Nile. The Silsileh defile, formed of sandstone rocks, is one of the most remarkable places in Egypt. On the east side the cliffs have been cut by tho ancient quarry- men into avenues and cirques, affording an opportunity of admiring the rare skill with which they made choice of the finest-grained stone and the care with which they extracted it. In this respect the Silsileh quarries might still serve as models for our modem contractors. It might almost seem, remarks Mariette, as if the • Fuyo, "Journal Offlciel de la R6piib1ique Fian^ise,'* April 20, 1881. ■\.'':. J J IW ■ »■ ; monfluremont » iMHipIo, who ust huvo aluo Henro the 1110 very clone « in Egyptian fth. The roul el of Syene, ia gave 810,000 annol 500 feet ••City of the ppears to huvo tor Nile. But lent day. Its ittle is now to !ent pottery on their receipts, ephantine, the groves, whose oamanding the the hamlet of iples dedicated larkness. But 18 and the sand w K6m-Ombo, raise the level Is. According Libyan range, fusef. But, as heme, which, if ultivation some lost remarkable ancient quarry- g the rare skill sare with which serve as models riette, as if the 81. « r&S!f^\ ■-■ ■ *. *«f niwnn i tf^ i j i , il jji i .. ,IU ■ ■f .wM i w, '' "*" ' ■ "if f -y ff ". ifi - OMBOS— EDFU. 877 whole mountain had been disposed in regular blocks, just as the .ilful joiner cuts into planks the stem of some valuable tree. Ou the west side the cliffs have been less encroached upon ; but they are richer in sculptures and inscriptions. Amongst the bas-reliefs of a rock temple is an image of tho goddess Isis suckling Horus — one of the noblest and most charming pictures left us by ancient Egyptian art.* Two colossal pylons announce to the traveller from afar the approach to the city of Edfu, the Teb of the ancients, the Apollinopo/is Magnd of the Greeks and Romans. Of all the temples of Egypt that of Edfu has been the best preserved in all its parts, and although dating only from the epoch of the Ptolemies, it presents a purity of lines and a harmony of proportions justifying a comparison with the monuments of the most flourishing periods of Egyptian art ; nowhere else had the traditions of the native builders been better preserved. This marvel- lous structure has been protected from the ravages of time chiefly through the sands of the desert. After removing the ninety-two hovels scattered over the mound and sweeping away the heaps of accumulated sand, Mariette found the ediflce in almost as perfect a state as on the day of its dedication. Nothing is missing, except perhaps a few stones of the gateways and roof ; even the outer enclosure, which concealed the temple from profane eyes, has been preserved intact. From the entrance of the court we see the perspective of colonnades and chambers stretching for a distance of nearly 430 feet, and throughout this vast space there is not a eingle recess whose ornaments and inscriptions, all in a state of perfect repair, do not clearly explain its purpose. Each chamber Tbears a separate name ; thus one is the " house of books " or library, and the catalogue of the contents is here engraved on the walls. The whole structure is itself a vast library, containing not only prayers and acts of thanksgiving in honour of the holy trinity, Harhut, Hathor, and Har- pokhrot, but also religious scenes of every description, astronomic tables, histories of campaigns, representations of sieges and battles. The temple thus presents an eucyclopaBdia of Egyptian records and mythology. But the chief interest of the Edfu monument lies in its seven-and-twenty geographical lists of Egypt and Nubia, enumerating all the provinces, with their products, their cities, and tutelar divinities. Thanks mainly to those nomenclatures, supplemented by fifteen other more or less complete lists found on various monuments along the banks of the Nile, Brugsch has been able to restore the ancient geography of Egypt. ^ From one of the pylons, which commands the entrance to the temple from a height of 125 feet, a prospect is afforded of the present town laid out like a chess-board in little cubic blocks of yellow earth, with the cupola and minaret rising in the centre — ^modest buildings at best compared with the great temple of the Egyptian gods. " It may be asserted without any exaggeration that if the priests of Edfu could rise from their graves with all their sacred paraphernalia, once more to do honour to the supplanted gods of the Nile Valley, they would here find every chamber, • Marietta, " Itinfirairo de la Hauto-Egyptc" t " Geographio des alien ^gypton." I.:.- . ■/^■-y}:i.-i^mi^--iM.vi;/iii»ii.-^^di^t^s 878 NORTH-EAST AFBICA. m every crypt, and every step just as they left it 1,600 years ago. Without replac- ing a single stone, the votaries of the divinity might march in solemn procession and in the prescribed route throughout the sacred precincts which have so long been desecrated; and should they have forgotten, during their long sleep, the purpose and use of each chamber, the inscriptions, marvellously well-preserved, would inform all who could read the hieroglyphics of the object to which each hall and cabinet was devoted. As regards preservation, Edfu is superior even to Denderah, for there the outer portions of the temple have disappeared, all but one propylon, and here no part has suffered any considerable injury. " The sanctuary of Edfu was dedicated to the great god Horus, who overthrew the evil principle Seth, or Typhon, for his father's sake ; and the town to which it belonged was therefore called by the ancient Egyptians Hut, after the winged sun- disc, or the city of the throne of Horus, or the city of the raising of Horus (to the throne of his father Osiris), or sometimes the city of the piercing (^tebu*) of Typhon, in the form of a river-horse. The Greeks compared Horus to their Apollo, the god of light or the sun, and called the city of Horus Apollinopolis. > " The sanctuary seems to have been founded at a very early date. Indeed Ptah, the oldest of the gods, is said to hdve built it for Ra. Kings of the twelfth djmasty, as well as Thothmes III., took part in the services carried on in it. The venerable structure was still intact at the time of the Persian dominion ; but under the first Ptolemies it had become necessary to erect a new temple on the old site. " Euergetes I., the third of the Lagide kings, began the building in accordance with the plans of the best Egyptian architects. It is a mighty structure, which was not finished till one hundred and eighty years later under Ptolemy Dionysius, or Auletes, the father of Cleopatra, in the year 57 B.C. Huge pylons stood at the entrance facing those worshippers who approached the sanctuary, decorated with the likeness of the Pharaoh as victor over his enemies. The visitor entering the bronze portals found himself in a vast peristyle surrounded on three sides by colonnades, and at the upper end of it rose a tall hypostyle, into which no glimpse was possible, since the walls connected the pillars which closed in the peristyle in front. "The actual temple-building is closely allied to that of Denderah as to the arrangement and decoration of the chambers. After passing through the hypostyle or great forecourt, of which the roof is' supported by eighteen columns, we come to a 'prosekos' with twelve columns, which is called the great banqueting-hall. Thence we proceed through the hall of sacrifice and the central hall of the ' repose of the gods,' and reach the sanctuary and grand throne, vi'hich consists of a huge block of porphyry brought to Edfu during the Persian dominion by the native Egyptian king, Nectaneboa I., who ruled in opposition to the Persian invaders. " The inscriptions in the laboratory and the little library are of the greatest scientific interest. The library was full of papyrus and leather rolls, and it adjoined the front wall of the hypostyle lying to the right of it. As at Denderah the roof was reached by a straight stair, and by a spiral flight of steps, and here • "Tebu," meBning "piercing," is ihe Coptic " Atbo,"' whence thu Arabic '' Edfu." vv^iwrjw^^dij- ESNEH— THEBES— LUXOR— KARN AX. 879 thout replac- in procejsion bave CO long ig sleep, the 3ll-pre8erved, ) which each erior even to i, all but one ho overthrew n to which it I winged sun- Qorus (to the ig (^tebu*) of }rus to their linopolis. Indeed Ptah, t the twelfth n in it. The n ; but under he old site, in accordance acture, which ay Dionysiufl, .8 stood at the ecorated with f entering the iree sides by ch no glimpse le peristyle in rah as to the the hypostyle ana, we come aqueting-hall. of the * repose sists of a huge by the native invaders, f the greatest rolls, and it 8 at Denderah teps, and here ' Edfu." also not the smallest spot is bare of inscriptions and pictures, including the ' calendar of festivals,' and others that have essentially contributed to our know- ledge of ancient Egyptian geography." * ESNEH. ' Below Edfu a gorge opens eastwards, through which -formerly descended the Herusha marauders, ancestors of the present Ababdeh tribe. Against their incur- sions ramparts had been constructed across the gorge, the entrance of which was commanded by a foit. The village of El-Kab now occupies the site of this ptrong- hold, which was the Nekhab of the ancient Egyptians, and the Eilethin of the Greeks. Amongst the numerous sepulchral caves excavated in the neighbouring rocks, one has been discovered in which are represented the victories of Ahmes, or Amosis, over the Sheph< rd Kings and the Ethiopian tribes. Lower down, the valley of the Nile broadens out as it approaches the modern Esneh, whose fields and gardens occupy a considerable space on the left bank of the stream. The Latopolis of the Greeks, Esneh still preserves its ancient name of Sni. Capital of a province and an industrial centre, producing blue cottons, shawls, and various kinds of pottery, it ranks as one of the chief trading places in Upper Egypt. A portion of the surrotmding plain is covered with sugar-cane plantations ; a few dflm -palms are also still seen, but farther down the vegetation along the river banks is almost entirely restricted to date-trees. The population of Esneh is of a very mixed character, comprising besides Coptic Christians and Mussulman fellahin, Nubians, various tribes of Bejas, and others from the oases. It was to Esneh that the Almeh of Cairo had been banished by Mohammed Ali, and here they are still more numerous than elsewhere. The ancient temple of Sni, dedicated to Eneph, " Soul of the World," was partially freed in 1842 from the heaps of sand and refuse encumbering it; but it still resembles a shrine in one of the Roman catacombs rather than an edifice erected above ground. The style of its architecture is much inferior to that of Edfu. Thebes — ^Ltjxor — Karnak. After describing a great bend below Esneh, and passing the pleasant village and sugar plantations of Ennent, the Nile emerges on the plain where are seen scattered over both banks the still perfect or ruined monuments of mighty Thebes — a world of palaces, of colonnades, temples, and underground buildings. Nowhere else is such a splendid display of religious edifices presented to the view. Yet but a very small portion of Thebes of the " himdred gates " has been preserved. The four chief groups of ruins still standing enclose a space of not more than five square miles. But in the days when No, the " City," in a pre-eminent sense, better known under the name of Pa- Amen, or " Abode of Ammon," was the centre of Egyptian trade and power, it stretched much farther north along the plains skirting the * G. Ebeis, " Egypt, Descriptive, Hintorical, and PictarRaque," ii., p. 32''. "w-V ' i>,""iy" ' *»" '^ n"" THEBES— LUXOR— KARNAK. 881 )iminent8 here village erected id or heap of ie, which ia at slisks bearing Lves, the other Round the ivated ground, ng lined with |r of a lion and menhotep III. beads» leading es, colonnades, ave resulted in Linenhotep III. are visible for lis part of the edifice has been laid bare. At the northern end, that is to say, in the first great courtyard approached through the double pylons, a partial clearance has also been effected, revealing the existence of a small portico and several colossi, some prostrate, some still erect on their pedestals. The portico dates from Ramses II., and it now appears that the temple, when first constructed, was not separated aa it now is from the Nile by an extensive space of rising ground ; but that all the southern end of the building behind the sanctuary, and part of the western side, rose, as it were, direct from the water's edge, like the western gallery at Philse. Some remains of a great quay, inscribed with the names and titles of Amen- hotep III., have also been brought to light. M. Maspero is able now to assert that Luxor, freed from the modera excrescences by which it has hitherto been disfiguied, is for grandeur of design and beauty of proportions almost equal to Eamak. The sculptures with which the chambers and columns are decorated are of the finest and most delicate execution ; while some of the wall subjects would not suffer in the comparison if placed side by side with the choicest bas-reliefs of Abydos.* For a period of three thousand years, from the twelfth dynasty to the last of the Ptolemies, temple after temple was erected at Kamak. Everywhere the eye lights on miracles of workmanship ; but the glory of this architectural museum is the chamber of colonnades, or " hypostyle," constructed in the reign of Seti I. It is the largest work of the kind in Egypt, one of those stupendous monuments which the memory instinctively conjures up when the mind passes in su voy the great masterpieces of human genius. The ceiling of this chamber, whijh is no less than 76 feet high in the central nave, is supported by 134 columns, of which those in the middle row have a circumference of no less than 32 feet. All are covered with paintings and sculptures in intaglio, as are also the walls, and amongst the bas-reliefs there are some of the greatest historical importance, repre- senting the victorieB of the Pharaohs over the Arabs, Syrians, and Hittites. In the " great temple " near this place is the famous " waU of numbers," a chapter of the national records, e portion of which was deposited by Champollion in the Louvre, and all of which are now known, thanks to the researches of Mariette. To the same exploier is due the discovery of a geographical list of six hundred and twenty-eight names of peoples and places inscribed on gateways. Amongst the tribes enumerated, Egyptologists have succeeded in identifying several from Phoenicia and Palestine, from Assyria and other remote Asiatic lands, from Ethiopia and the region of aromatic herbs stretching along the African seaboard south of the Red Sea, Certain nimies have also been deciphered which have been referred to the distimt region of the great equatorial lakes in our days again for the second or thir>,l time discoveijjd by Speke, Grant, Baker and other explorers. Aceoi'ding to Hartmann, the Funj type may be recognised, in the clearest manner amongst the figures of Ethiopian captives, t * Amelia B. Edwards, "Academy," MaTh 2i, 1886. t "Zeitschrift fur Kthnologje," vol. i., 1869. "'V-. mi 382 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. The Necropolis of Thebes. The Thebes of the left bauk ^\ an rather a city of the dead than of the living. Nevertheless the portion of the plain where the ground begins to rise towards the Libyan escarpments also abounds in monuments, mostly, however, of a sepulchral Fig. 114.— RoiNB OP Thbbbs : Pkopylon, ok Northbrv Gatb. ii f^tf'l character. An eminence bearing the Arabic name of Medtnet-Abu is covered with temples containing painted and sculptured historical pictures, on which are depicted with extraordinary accuracy the types and costumes of Hittites, Amorrheans, Philistines, Teucrians, D&naaus, Etruscans, Sards, Ethiopians, Arabs, Libyans and f:j^ '■( /;';'>, fe . „ . , ., >;.< ». a . - f tho living, towards the a sepulchral i covered with ih are depicted Amorrheans, , Libyans and mi^v L^,i, i *!,wi) i ;i.i i w i' tii ' iny « i,.HJ i K i n*. if! W ' w )""' I ' ti 'T . j m ' y ^ w ' i »' ' . ' . i'i' ,^^ n<,.w .jh'juh ' ■ j ' .^ i,» '>^ THE NE0BOPOLI8 OP THEBES. 888 other conquered peoples. Once cleared of the accumulated refuse, the temple of Medinet-Abu, the " book of the conquests and triumphs of Ramses III., master of the sword on earth," will become the mobt complete, the most valuable and interesting of all the Egyptian sanctuaries. Close by stands the almost Greek temple of Deir-el-Medineh, built by Ptolemy Philopator, and the Ramesseum with its triumj.. il gateway, adorned with four colossal decapitated figures. This is the edifice described by Diodorus under the name of the " tomb of Osymandias." In one of the temple courts lies the broken pink granite statue of Ramses II., formerly a monolithic block 55 feet high, weighing over one thousand tons, cciisequently heavier than the largest block in the temples of Baalbek, but at least a third less than the en-atic boulder on which has been erected the equestrian statue of Peter the Great. Between the Ramesseum and the temples of Medinet-Abu stood several colossal statues. Of these two only ' are still erect, those that became so famous in ancient times under the name of the statues of Memnon, but which in reality represent the Pharaoh Amenhotep II., seat«d in the hieratic attitude with his hands resting on his knees. Both are nearly 65 feet high with their pedestals, which, however, have sunk deep into the alluvial soil. The colossus which the Greeks and the Romans visited in crowds, and which they covered with writings in prose and verse, is the northernmost of the two. Its celebrity was due to the sound which it emitted, like that of the chord of a lyre when it breaks, and which, according to- some authorities, began to vibrate in harmonious sighs as soon as tho first rays of the sun dispersed the morning dew. But after Septimius Severus caused a fracture in the statue to be clumsily repaired, its voice was hushed for ever. No sound is any longer heard at dawn ; but in the temple of Earnak there are some granite blocks which still emit sonorous vibrations when lit up by the morning sun. North and west of the Ramesseum and of the temple of Seti which crowns the Kamak eminence are situated the rocks and ravines honeycombed with under- ground structures. Above the plain rises a hill of pyramidal form, shaped by the hand of nature into vast parallel flights of steps. According to some writers this characteristic form served as the model for the artificial pyramids raised overf the royal tombs. Thus was realised at Memphis, as well as at Thebes, the formula of the ritual pronounced by the god of the lower regions : " I have set apart a dwelling unto thee in the moimtain by the west." The winding gorge ramifying amid these cliffs bears the name of Biban-el- Moluk, that is, " Gates of the Kings." It presents an imposing aspect with its bare rocky sides scored by vertical fissures, giving access to *ho royal tombs. Towards the extremity of the gorge is situated the sepulchral cave of Seti I., discovered by Belzoni in 1818, and remarkable especially for its painted bas- reliefs, one of which represents the '■'four races of the world" — Retu, Amu, Nohesu, and Tamahu, that is to say, the Egyptians, Asiatics, Negroes, and Libyans — marching in solemn procession at the obsequies of Seti. •' At the opening of the gorges between the Kurnah and Assassif hills, Mariette ■"*»-.. ,0- 884 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. discovered in 1859 the mummy of a certain Queen Aahhotep, probably the mother of King Ahmos or Amosis. The omameuts of this queen, now preserved in the Bulaq museum, near Cairo, are of such marvellous workmanship that modem jewellers confess their inability even to imitate them. It seems probable that from another tomb in the Assassif hill also comes the Ebers papyrus, the " hermetic " book containing the pharmacopoeia of the Egyptians at the time of the Thotmcs dynasty. West of the chief eminence, and not far from the Sheikh Abd-el-Eumah, another hill pierced with galleries like a rabbit-burrow, a series of terraces is Fig. 116. — Entrancb to thi Vallky of tub Royal Tomb*. Il^tZ— '►•.■•'■■-■•'■^"rr-;'^^ "fii ^5K" -:^i;r- '"?-•" JT "-"" — -i," * \. x ^s^; - - -"^ ■ occupied by the Deir-el-Bah&ri, an obituary chapel, which in later times was probably used as a Christian church. On its ruined walls Mariette brought to light some most interesting sculptures, representing diverse historical objects, amongst others the naval expedition sent l^ the Queen-Regent Hatshopsitu to the land of Punt, that is, either to South Arabia or the present Somaliland. In another tomb, known as the Rekhmara, are also depicted ethnographic scenes relating to the same land of Punt. A neighbouring grotto, for which Maspero and Brro-fli had long been searching, has yielded a whole series of royal mummies, amongst which are those of Ahmes I., of Thotmes II., conqueror of Asia Minor, of Ramses II., the legendary Sesostris of the Greeks, of Seti I., builder of the marvellous hypostyle chamber. y the mother served in the that modern }robable that papyrus, the le time of the )d-el-Eumah, of terraces is fht' •Ci- ^) ter times was tte brought to »rical obje6ts, shopsitu to the )maliland. In graphic scenes trhich Maspero oyal mummies, Asia Minor, of builder of the «f4*iji[*'--»lj? .-.■ai^^*ii'W*a ^■u*,,^" ^ —■• "•MMpHwwniap^ "wi.mWBi j ;p 'mm: Hfsmi. k[^^^',"'"'' n ■••<>:^''' .viwrt KUBTI— KENEU— K08SEIK. 886 The Riibtcrrancan structures of Thobos hovo altogether suppHwl whole colloo- tions, which now form the pride of the various KuroiM3uii muHimiiiH. From the crest of the surrounding hills und heaps of refuse, u magnificent panoramic view is affordwl of the groups of stupendous monuments in everlasting stone, raised by the Setis and Kumsos on the opposite side of the river. KunTi — Eeneh. The groat bend described by the Nile in an easterly direction below Thebes, and. the wide breaches in the Arabian range at this point affording easy access to the Red Seo, could not fail to confer paramount commercial importance on this section of the valley. But the site of its central emporium has frequently been shifted, each city, ruined by wars or even razed to the ground by conquering hosts, still springing up again at some distance from its predecessor. In this rej^ion Kubti, the Coptos of the Grc-ks, and now the obscure village of Ou/f or ITo/f, was the oldest trading-place, at^ IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 LilM |25 ,! I2£ m±i. nil T 1 1.1 - B4 -«— aiau HiDtDgraphic Sciences Corpomtion 23 WIST MAIN STRIH WiBSTiR,N.Y. 145S0 (716)872-4503 Ife ... . ,Jii«i3S3©;»te«*v-: CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHM/ICMH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Inatituta for Hiatorical Microraproductlons / Institut Canadian da microraproductiona hiatoriquaa •^am w$ iwWU BH BW HBI JICjy DENDERAH. 887 to be satisfied with a slightly sulphureous liquid, which has to be sought over a day's journey in the desert. The hills and plains of the surrounding district aro almost destitute of verdure, and all along the coast little is to be seen except sands and the coral reefs that have been slowly upheaved above the present sea-level. Old Kosseir, lying over 3 miles to the north-west, is no longer accessible to shipping. The sheh, or labyrinth of coralline rocks developed in front of the beach, has rendered the entrance of the harbour so narrow that pilots no longer venture to risk the passage Either Kosseir, or possibly some point farther north on Abu-Soraer Bay, marks the site of the ancient Myos Hormon, which during the Roman period was one of the most frequented ports on the Red Sea. Numerous tombs, inscriptions, and other remains of antiquity are found in the neighbourhood of the town and round about the wells along the routes across the Arabian desert. Rich sulphur beds were till recently worked at a place farther north near the headland of Ras-el-Gimsah, which faces the Ras Mohammed at the southern extremity of the peninsula of Sinai. ' Denderah. On the left bank of the Nile over against Keneh the verdant plains of Denderah, the Tentyris of the Greeks, afford a pleasant relief to the heaps of yellow refuse aiid the triple enclosure of the triple temple still marking the site of this ancient city. The inhabitants of this place were famous in former timed for their skill in capturing and charming the crocodiles, which they used as mounts. At present there are no longer any crocodiles in this part of the Nile. The great temple of Denderah, built on the foundations of older monuments, is of comparatively recent date, as appears from the medallions of Cleopatra and the Roman emperors down to Antoninus Pius. Nevertheless in its disposition and ornamentation it reproduces the more ancient sanctuaries, although evidently under the influence of Hellenic art. Hathor, the tutelar divinity of Denderah, was a very different being as understood by the Alexandrian platonists from the same goddess as worshipped in the time of the Pharaohs. The temple of Hathor, which is in a good state of repair, is one of the richest in documents of a religious character, ceremonial programmes, geographical tables of cities and provinces, texts of prayers and incantations, calendars of feasts, medical recipes, lists of drugs, and 80 forth. At Denderah was found the precious zodiac, since transferred to the National Library of Paris. Mariette has devoted a large work solely to a descrip- tion of this temple, a verj"^ " Talmud in stone," which he himself contributed to decipher, and many a page of which he discovered.* Taken as a whole this monument unfolds in all its details a picture of the ancient ritual, revealing in succession all the ceremonies from chamber to chamber, until we reach the " holy of holies," where the king alone penetrating found himself face to face with the deity. " The portico of the temple is about 135 feet in width, and is architecturally * " Denderah, description g^n^ntle dii grand temple do cette ville." 888 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. one of the richest and most beautiful structures of its class. It is supported by twenty-four columns, four deep, nearly 50 feet in height, and having a diameter of more than 7 feet at the thickest part. The capitals have sculptured on each of their four sides a full face of Athor, crowned by a small shrine or temple. The sculptures, which are of less merit than the architecture, represent offerings made by some of the early Caesars ; and on the ceiling are various mystical subjects, probably of an astronomical import, and the famous quadrangular zodiac, which is still in its original position. " Passing through the back wall of the portico (which was at one time the front wall of the temple), the visitor enters a hall supported by three columns on each side, with cup- shaped capitals beneath those formed by the temple- crowned faces of Athor ; and then proceeding right onwards through two similar halls, he reaches the sanctuary, which is isolated by a passage running all round. " On each side of the temple are many small apartments, and two entrance- ways from the exterior, as well as singular inclined passages in the walls, two of which are entered from the sides of the portico. All the chambers and passages, except the two last mentioned, are profusely covered with sculptures and inscrip- tions of a religious character, chiefly depicting and narrating the piety of the sovereigns by whom the temple was erected. The royal names have ii't always been filled in ; but, where they have been sculptured, they are generally those of the last Cleopatra and Cajsarion, her son by Julius Caesar. , " A staircase on the left-hand side of the second chamber behind the portico conducts to the roof of the temple. Here are a sort of chape) and some small chambers, one of which is very interesting, because its sculptures relate to the story of Osiris. The exterior of the temple is as completely covered with sculptures as the interior. Among the figures there represented are those of Cleopatra and Cajsarion ; but they cannot be supposed to bear any resemblance, since they belong not alone to a conventional art, but also to its lowest period. " There are two smaller temples within the same inclosure as the great temple of Athor, one dedicated to Isis in the thirty- first year of Augustus, and the other usually known as the Typhonium, from the representations of Typhon on the capitals of its columns, but probably connected with the worship of Athor." * ; It ThINIS— GiRGEH. . In the broader part of the Xile Valley, below Denderah, the two hamlets of Harabdt-d-Madfmeh, that is, " Ilarab&t the Buried," and El-Khargeh, still mark the site of Abi/dos. Till recently these ruins had been identified with the ancient This (Thinis), which at one time eclipsed the fame of Thebes and Memphis themselves. But according to Mariette the remains of this venerable place should be sought lower down, either at Girgeh itself or in its immediate vicinity, and in any case it is now certain that This and Abydos were two different places. At This was bom Mena, or Menes, the reputed founder of the Egyptian monarchy. Here • " Encyclopa9dia Britannicn," ninth edition, art. Penderah. f'- fii ■jA'ntf'^Wif rt >".'i rt^iihiiii I I , rW i l!ii ^ )^, . j^,, .»■ TIIINIS-OIEOEn. 889 t is supported by ing a diameter of stured on each of or temple. The it offerings made lystical subjects, zodiac, which is He time the front columns on each )le-crowned faces halls, he reaches id two entrance- the walls, two of ers and passages, ures and inscrip- the piety of the have II '>t always enerally those of ehind the portico ' and some small res relate to the [y covered with ted are those of any resemblance, west period, the great temple us, and the other )U on the capitals ( two hamlets of frgeh, still mark with the ancient 9 and Memphis ible place should inity, and in any places. At This lonarchy. Here also, according to the legend, the body of Osiris, since transported to PhiloD, had been buried hundreds of thousands of years before that event. In other words, to this hallowed spot tradition pointed as the cradle of the autochthonous people, from whoso independently developed civilisation is mainly derived our modern culture, through the intermediate channel of the Hellenes. All traces have vanished of the temple whither pilgrims were attracted from all parts, just as those of the Christian world still direct their footsteps towards the Fig. 117. — Abydob; BAS-RBiiiEF in the Temple of Seti I., iiEPUESENTiNa a Scene op ASOUATION. Holy SepiJchre of Jerusalem. But the nitrous sands of the district have revealed a large number of tombs here built by Egyptian devotees anxious to repose by the side of their national deity. According to Maspero far more than half of all the sepidchral stones presei-ved in the European museums come from Abydos. A group of tombs large enough to have assumed the appearance of a volcanic mound is known by the name of K6m-es-Sultan, or "King's Mount." The explorations here being made continually reveal tombs of older and older date, the farther the 890 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. search is prosecuted. Hence some hope has been expressed that sooner or later the excavators may light upon the very entrance of the crypt that led to the shrine of the god himself. To the original sanctuary has succeeded a monument which, however posterior to the temple of Osiris, is still none the less one of the most venerable in Egypt. This is the so-called Meinnonium, here erected by Seti I. thirty-three centuries ago, in order to transmit his glory to future generations, but which his son, Kamses II., turned to far more account to perpetuate the memory of his own exploits. Geographical lists have been sculptured on the basement of this temple of Seti I., and the British Museum possesses a " table of Abydos," a mutilated list of kings from the temple of Ramses II. But a new " table of Abydos," containing the complete list of the seventy- six kings from Menes to Seti, has been brought to light by the researches of Mariette. Below Abydos the older monuments of Egyptian culture have for the most part disappeared. Here nothing is met except towns and villages, which, if not absolutely modern, no longer contain any important remains of ancient times. Oirgeh or Gerga, capital of a province, stands on the west side of the stream, which being here abruptly deflected from the opposite side, has eroded the left bank, carrying away half of the town, with its mosques and minarets. A little lower down, Sohfiff and the industrious town of Akhmiii, the ancient Cliemno and the Panopolis of the Greeks, face each other on either side of the river. Then follow on the western plain, Tdhta and Ahutig, near which is a gorge still visited by pilgrims, who here assemble to worship the sacred serpent as of old. In this part of Upper Egypt the Coptic language survived for some time after it had become extinct elsewhere in the Nile Valley. SlUT. Farther on near the sdme bank, but more inland, are seen the picturesque out- lines of a large town, which under the slightly modified form of Sint or Assiut has preserved its ancient name of Saut. This is the Li/copolis, or " wolf town," of the Greeks, so named because it was dedicated to the god Anubis. Platinus was a native of Siut, which as the capital of all Upper Egypt is a place of some trade and industry. Here are made a peculiar kind of black, white, and red earthen- ware, and pipes so highly prized that they are even exported to foreign countries. The bazaar is well stocked with the produce of Dar-F6r and the surrounding oases, which finds an outlet through the neighbouring riverain port of Hamrah. Till recently the Coptic monks of the adjacent village of Zawiet-el-Deir carried on under special privilege the nefarious trade in the mutilation of children, who were afterwards sold as guardians of the Egyptian harems. Other Copts are more worthily employed in the weaving of linen fabrics, which have become one of the specialities of the industries of Upper Egypt. THE GREAT AND LITTLE OASES. 891 >oner or later tho ed to tho shrino io\vcvor posterior lerable in Egypt, ree centuries ago, son, Ramses II., is own exploits, temple of Seti I., ated list of kings containing the been brought to ivo for the most ■es, which, if not >f ancient times, ho stream, which i the left bank, A little lower C/iemno and the r. Then follow > still visited by d. In this part er it had become picturesque out- •f Siiit or Assiut " wolf town," of Platinus was a ce of some trade md red earthen- oreign countries, the surrounding M)rt of Hamrah. t-el-Deir carried of children, who r Copts are more 3come one of the The Great and Little Oases. Siut, more than any other Egyptian town, maintains direct relations with tho oases, which are developed in a vast crescent parallel with the bend of tho Nile sweeping round from the south to the west and north-west. Tho " Great " or " Southern " Oasis, known also as that of Khargeh, although tho largest, is no longer the most populous, but still enjoys some importance as a station for the caravans from Dar-For. Its capital, whose site hns never been shifted throughout historic times, has preserved a temple of Ammon built during the reign of Darius, Fig, 118.— Red Pottbry of Siut. " Son of Isis and Osiris." An avenue of pylons leads to the sanctuary, whose bas-reliefs present an extraordinary variety of historical and other figures. In this respect the temple of Darius is altogether unique.* All the surrounding cliffs are pierced with sepulchral chambers, in which Christian tombs are very numerous. The oasis of Boris, more to the south, has also preserved an Egyptian temple dating from the Roman period. Round about the present oasis are scattered many ruins, showing that the cultivated lands formerly covered a far greater extent than is now the case. All these tracts might be reclaimed by clearing out the choked-up wells, and draining the soil where the water used in irrigating the rice-fields in some places forms unhealthy , , • • Hoskins' " Visit to the Great Oasis of the Libyan Desert." 802 NORTH-EAST AFllICA. marfihcs. The inhabitants, of somewhat darker comploxion than the Egyptians, due ])robably to a mixture of Negro blood, for the most part present u eudaverous look. They are ulso very poor, being often obliged to pay tho taxes in kind with palm-leuf baskets and suchlike articles. Within tho Kasr of Khargoh the buildings are crowdod one on the other, and the network of narrow lanes runs underground through vaulted galleries. At rare intervals an aperture like that of a well gives access to a dazzling ray of light, relieving the gloom of these dark passages. Such is the style of building preva- lent throughout all the towns of Siwah, as well as in many other towns in the oases, and tho same arrangement occurs even in Nubia. The Wah-el-Gharbieh, or " Western Oasis," better known as that of Dakhel, or Dakhleh, that is, the " Interior," is by far the most densely peopled, although scarcely mentioned by the ancient writers. Like Khargeh, it has its temple of Fig. 119.— Oasbr of Kharobh and Dakubi.. Soala 1 : S.SOaooo. CnltiTatod Traots. 80 MUw. P f Jupiter Ammon, which is situated in the neighbourhood of the capital known by the name of El-Kasr, or " The Castle." This is probably the sanctuary that Cambyses intended to visit during the expedition to the south which ended so disastrously. The population consists of fellahtn with the same usages and engaged in the same pursuits as those of the Nile Valley, but far more crowded together. Every foot of available land is carefully cultivated, and the date groves, tended with almost filial devotion, yield abundant supplies of delicious fruit. Although described as a "detached fragment of Egypt," the Dakhel oasis nevertheless differs from it in its vegetation. Here are found plantations of olives, lemons, and oranges interspersed among the palm groves, and producing the finest fruits of the oases. The inhabitants of Dakhel have a few horses, but they have failed to breed camels, in consequence of a poisonous fly that infests the district during the summer, and whose bite is fatal to this animal. To the want of camels ia'niiKiiUirimitim, THE GREAT AND LITTLE OASES. 808 the Egyptians, nt ti cuduvoruus WB in kiud with a the other, anil llorics. At rare ag ray of light, building prova- er towns in the that of Dakhel, eopled, although as its temple of apital known by B sanctuary that which ended so ime usages and ir more crowded the date groves, ious fruit, he Dakhel oasis itations of olives, ducing the finest 58, but they have fests the district } want of camels iR mninly attributod tho profound ignorance of the nativos rosi)rctiiig the wildor- nesH Htrotching woHtwurds. For thora the sandy shores of tlicir islet uro like thoxe of tho trackless ocean on which no sail is seen. Tho small oasis ol' Furafreh lies exactly under tho same parallel us Siut, but 180 miles in a straight lino to the west. It is of little iniportunco, and all of its few hundred inhabitants might easily find a refuge within the enclosure of the Kasr, which commands the chief hamlet. It hap been only twice visited by European explorers, Cailliaud in 1819 and Rohlfs with his companions in 1874. Nor is Farafreh very well disposed towards the " Infidel," thanks to the brother- Fig. 120. — TJndbhohound Pabsaoi at Mihu«di. nbar Mahahhaka, Nvhia. hood of the Senusi, who have here found a large number of adherents. These Mohammedan missionaries, who arrived poor, are now the largest proprietors in the oasis. They have in fact reduced the whole population to a state of serfdom, in return for their enforced labour teaching them a few verses from the Koran. In this way all the children have learnt to read and write. The Bakharieh Oasis, lying nearer to the Nile Valley and being better supplied with springs than Farafreh, is also far more densely peopled. This is probably the " Little Oasis " of the ancients, and here are still to be seen a few monuments dating from the Roman period, including a noble triumphal arch, some under- ground aqueducts and fortifications. :- ^ ^ .■'' ' i P '\.',«BjHt" l t" ' ." 804 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. SlWAH — GaRA. Tho OU80H further reinovod from the Nile uiid forming a phyHical dependonce of Cyrciiuioii mther than of the fluviul region, constitute the Siwuh group, fuiuous in ancient tiniea for the oracle of Ammon, which, according to IIurodotuM, was of e(piul anticjuity with that o£ Dodonu. Siwah and Agrrmi, the two chief towns in the oasis, are built.of nunimulitic limestone and blocks of impure rock salt, each on the slope of a rocky hill. Their outer walls and terraces are so disposed as to form irregular fortresses of extremely picturesque appearance. That of Siwuh, approached by no less than fifteen gates, has a circumference of not more than 1,260 feet, and its ramparts are surmounted by high, square, and round towers, all Pig. 121.— Thh Siwah Gams. Boale 1 : 8aa,00O. 29' lb' 0/.D»h»hm ^0L^^. "-'^'^M^. llf.Ouaa ?**'; ?Ji?^ >«s&4%v 29 101 26-40 f .of G reeiiwlch mm steppe. Saline. 6MUee. SB-SO' ■*:• of different form. These towers are in reality so many houses piled up close together, and built over a labyrinth of subterranean galleries. The town thus grows in height before its base is broadened out. The temple of Jupiter Ammon, whither the Macedonian conqueror went to have himself oracularly proclaimed master of the world, is still standing near Agermi, and within half a mile are visible the ruins of another sanctuary amid the surrounding palm-trees. Tho hieroglyphics on this building have not yet been deciphered. The Jebel-el-Mutah, one of the isolated crags in the Siwah depression, is honeycombed in all directions by the galleries of a necropolis. Dates are the staple commodity of Siwah, M. Jourdan made an attempt to calculate the produce of the date groves in this oasis, taking as a standard of measurement the cube of the fruit accumulated for the expedition on the market- I , I WW" ASIIMl'NKIN - ANTINOK. 8or> lyHicul (Iflpondonce villi group, fuinous Herodotus, wus of two chief towiiH in rock milt, ouch on M) disiH)SC(l UN to Thut of Siw.ih, of not more thun round towers, uU Bs piled up close The town thus >nqueror went to 11 standing near nctuary amid the ave not yet been Siwah depression, de an attempt to as a standard of n on the market- pliico near the grout curuvanHO' \i. Aoeordiiig to tluH rough CHtiniiitt' llm oiio liundred thousand pitliiiH of Hiwuh might supply three million kilogriiniineH of dateH, and those of Agernii much about the wime (piimtity. This in excdusivo of the public plantations, which yield fruit of an inferior (ptulity, Hupplying foiMer for the animals. The salt of Siwah, whitih is of a superior quJlity, wum fonnerly roserved for cortuiii religious ceremonies, and was exported us far uh Persiii for the use of the royal household. The inhabitants of Siwah, who are of indolent habits, seek no foreign markets for uU these commodities, or for the tobacco smuggled into the oasis from the coast of Cyrenaica. Of disagreeable appearance, and probably of very mixed origin, they betray no resemblance to the fellahin, but are as emaciated and fever-stricken in appearance as the natives of El-Khargeh. Their language is of Berl)er origin, although most of them understand and even speak a little Arabic. They are excessively jealous, and oblige all the unmarried adult males, whether bachelors or widowers, to dwell together outside the town in a sort of fortress, where they remain shut up during the night. Newly married people remove at once to the town, a sort of common tribal harem, where the husbond's kindred assign them the upper story of their pyramidal houses. In these dwellings the generations are thus distributed on an /iscending scale from the ground-floor upwards. The village of Oara, in the oasis of like name, presents like Siwah the aspect of a feudal stronghold. The inhabitants of Siwah and Gara are still very fanatical, although Icse so than those of the oasis of Faredgha, which lies farther west in the direction of the Gulf of Cabes. Here on the slopes of the plateau skirting' the depression on the north, is situated the parent house of the Senusi brotherhood. Jarabub or Jerkbdb, as this place is variously called, was founded in the year 1860, as the residence of Sidi Mohammed el-Mahdi, the grand-master of the Senusi. A small arsenal and a small-arms factory are attached to this monastery, the inmates of which, mostly immigrants from Algeria, Morocco, and other distant Mohammedan countries, appear to have numbered about 760 in the year 1883. According to Godfrey Both, the Mahdi of Faredgha is the " benefactor of the Bedouins." To him is due the establishment in the Sahara of over fifty stations where caravans can obtain water and provisions. ASHMUNEIM — AnTINOE. From Siut to Cairo all the towns, connected together by the Nile Valley railway, follow along the left bank of the river, the only side skirted by a broad zone of land under cultivation. Beyond Manfalut begins the Ibrahimieh Canal, which derives its supply from the Bahr-Yusef. Here the plains are intersected in all directions by channels and irrigation rills. This fertile region of Egypt was formerly covered with several large towns. At the foot of the Arabian range lies the great necro- polis of Tell-el-Amarna, where all the dead were placed under the protection of the Semitic god Aten (Adon, Adonai), the " radiant orb." Ashmunein, near the station and large sugar factory of Roda, occupies the site * ir ' I 'f 8M Nonm-EAHT AFRICA. of Khniuiiii, whicli tho OrorkM and UutnaiiH railed ITfrmopnllH Marfnti, and wlumo i)tM>r(i|Miliit, rx((l in tho Libyan hilU, coiitaiitN largo nuuib<.>rH of muiiiiiiitit'd iitim's and (>yn(M>«>])halN. Farther cumI on tho ripfht bank, over af^ainnt tho town of MnUaireh-rl-Ariiih, iho palm grovcK Murroundinf? Sheikh- Ahmli'h aro Mtrown with riiiuM, tho roniainH <>f tho finoiont Aiidiior, found(>d by Hadrian in honour of AntinouH. NutnorouH inonu- inontN of thiH Roman city, notably Honio Huporb Doric and (^orinthian colon Ilado^4, were Htill Htanding down to tho middle of tho prew^nt century. Hut thoy havo Hiiu'o Ikhmi doHtroyod to supply limo and building matorialH for the modern buildingH in tho (liHtrict. This part uf tho Arabian range uIhu cuntuiuH u vuHt nuinbor of sepulchral chamlwrH. North of Shoikh-Abadch tho cliffH conceal other grottocH, some of which aro nearly five thouHtind years old. These subterranean buildings which take theiumio of Unii-IfdMKfiii, from a neighl)ouring village, comprise tho most intoroHting tombs in all Kgypt, prociw.'ly bt>cuu80 thoy are not consecratiHl to kings and high ufticials of the royal courtn. Tho picturoH on the walls have less conventional pomp, and repreHont fewer funeral rites and mystic ceremonies ; but they intnKluce us to the very life of the people : its struggles, its pursuits of all kinds, its family circles ; itR iportH and games, such as pitc^h and toss, tennis, hot cockles, and even cricket. Tho painted bas-reliefs of these tombs reveal to us the Egyptians of the olden times, such as they were in war, on their farms, in tho workshop, in their hours of relaxation and repose. Hero are revealed all the secrets of their crafts, and the very tricks of their jugglers and mountebanks. # ^ MiMEH — AbU-GiKG. Minieh, or Minivt, which has replaced the ancient Munat-Khufu, or " Nurse of Cheops," is a provincial capital, and still one of the great cities of Egypt. It has preserved no remains of its ancient monuments ; but a large market is held under its wide-sprmding sycamores, and its sugar factory is one of the most active in the country. On a cliff near Minieh stands the famous Deir-cl-Bakara, or " Convent of the Pulley," so called from a pulley-rope by which its Coptic monks let them- selves down to the river, and swim out to ask bakshish of every passing vessel. In the interior of the Arabian desert, but much nearer to the Red Sea than tho Nile, aro situated two other convents of the " Lower Thebais," Saint Anthony and Saint Paid, the first of which, with a commimity of about fifty monks, is tho oldest Christian monastery not only in Egypt, but in the whole world. Both possess shady gardens enclosed within the convent walls. The town of Abu-Girg, standing near the Nile and on the railway, has sup- planted in commercial importance its former rival Behneseh, which lies more to the north-west on the Bahr-Yusef amid the ruins of the ancient Patmjat, the Oxyrrhin- chos of the Greeks. Then follow farther down the valley Maghaga, Fenhn, and Beni-Sucf, the last-named capital of a province and a trading- place, where some cloth -mills are kept going. From time immemorial this has also been the chief ;-i# iiiiiiii^»rn village of AhnaH-(0 the head of leived the idea led by Strabo. > his anticipa- distances over red and forty- row of statues [ an Egyptian t the entrance ?hu8 was con- e god Serapifl, incarnation of ties and even nes to contend even thousand e Louvre and discovered, by CPerra NEW TTOHK, D. APPLETON 8c C9 ^. • '%-^<^.'^m^^^^\ 'W ll WiiH" THE OEEAT PYRAMIDS. 401 means of which Mariette was able to determine with certainty the chronology of Egypt as far back as the year 980 of the old era. The necropoles of Saqqarah have also furnished Mariette and other explorers with objects of the highest interest, amongst others the " Table of Saqqarah," containing a list of kings, and the statue of a scribe with eye of rock crystal and characteristic expression, now deposited in the Louvro. One of the tombs, that of Ti, described by M. de Rouge as the " marvel of Saqqarah," forms an exquisite idyl, with its series of charming scenes representing the landscapes, daily labours, and pleasures of rural life. One of the scenes bears a legend in these words, summing up the history of Ti : " When he toils man is full of sweetness, and such am I." * •^'.- The Great Pyramius. The pyramids terminating northwards the long line of royal tombs are known as those of Gizeh, from the village of that name, which stands on the right bank of the Nile over against Old Cairo. In these stupendous monuments the whole of Egypt is symbolised. The three enormous piles overshadowing the verdant plain and winding stream are the embodiment of the mental image conjured up by the very name of Egypt. Their triangular outlines, towering above the Libyan plateau, are even visible over a vast distance throughout the Nile Valley and plains of the delta. For hours together the wayfarer journeying onwards beholds them standing out against the horizon, apparently neither enlarged nor diminished in dimensions. They seem still to accompany him, moving mysteriously along above villages, trees, and cultivated lands: A nearer view reveals them filling up all the prospect in one direction ; and the eye now follows with amazement the graded lines of the prodigious masses, showing in the light the profile of their rugged slopes, disposed in flights of fractured steps. They resemble moimtains hewn into square blocks rather than structures raised by mortal hand, revealing as it were " the transition bet".'een the colossi of art and the giant works of nature." " All things fear time," says the Arab proverb ; " but time fears the pyramids." Doubtless these piles of stone have only the beauty of their geometrical lines, lacking all architectural display ; but they overawe by their very mass, and still more by their antiquity : by the memory of the generations of man that, like thu everlasting stream of the Nile, have flowed silently onwards at their feet. For however old in themselves, these monuments of human slavery attest the existence of a still older antecedent culture, marked by the slow evolution of science and the industries from their crude beginnings in the Nile Valley. In these gigantic structures geometry has discovered measurements of supreme accuracy, for here all has been measured and planned in due proportion. The very perfection of these proportions has suggested to many observers the idea of a deep symbolical meaning, and has even given birth to a sort of " religion of the pyramids," which * " M^moire BUT lea monuments des »ix premieres dynastiea." .;;. 26— AF. ■ iHi. ' W» "; '.'jm « i i n j) .M 409 NOBTH-EAST AFRICA. has found adherents, especially in Scotland and the New "World. By their pro- portions and dimensions the pyramids have thus come to be regarded as so many " Bibles in stone." The Pyramid of Cheops, or Khufu, the largest of the three, is estimated to Ilg. 123. — ^AsciuiT or thb Qkkat FvaAMiD. \'i Jover an area of over twelve acres, while its four triangular sides present altogether a surface of no less than twenty a^res in extent. The quantity of materials required to be brought from great distances by the Nile, placed on their rocky ) f .JJIIll » |»j.4-l| | BW'j«;jH ! i r ^UB-Jw»m;* |»Lj lii ni i i i H I « » . ' i 'i i. i j 1)1 .ii ii i liii ii n i Hn i ' THE GREAT PYRAMIDS. 408 By thoir pro- Led as so many s estimated to *4, t ^m: sent altogether '' of materials >n their rocky foundations, raised to a height of over 600 feet, and adjusted with the greatest care, was no less than 90,000,000 cubic feet, a quantity sufficient to build a wall seven feet high and twenty inches thick across the whole of Western Europe from Lisbon to Warsaw. The basilica of St. I'eter's would disappear altogether, with its colonnades and cupola, in the interior of this prodigious polyhedron in stone. According to Herodotus, an inscription on the Great Pyramid estimated at 1,600 silver talents, or £400,000, the sum expended on the purchase of the garlic, onions, and parsley required to supply the workmen with these articles of food ; and for the implements, machinery, quarrying, transport of materials, and so forth, who will estimate the enornfbus outlays that must have been incurred ! But, above all, how many human lives must have been sacrificed on the works! According to a Greek tradition — which, however, according to Maspero, rests on no historic evidence — the people held in horror these monuments of their bondage and oppression. They were even said to have avoided uttering the very names of the kings in whose honour these moimtains of stone had been raised. While exceeding all other structures in bulk, the pyramids are surpassed in height by some of the minsters in the west of Europe. The Pyramid of Cheops, diminished by some forty feet through the loss of its stone facing and the subsidence of its foundations, has a present height of 456 feet ;* that of Khephren, or Ehefra, about six feet less ; while the third, of Mycerinus, or Menkera, falls below one-half of these elevations. The other pyramids of the plateau, " mere embryos," so to say, can scarcely be distinguished from the heaps of refuse scattered at the base of the two larger piles. The last, proceeding northwards, is that of Ahu-Boash. ^Notwithstanding the statements often made to the contrary, the two great pyramids are easily scaled, even without the assistance of the Bedouins, who under- take for bakshish to look after the safety of travellers. In any case the labour expended on the ascent is amply compensated by the marvellous view commanded from the summit. From this altitude the eye sweeps over a boundless and varied prospect, where the red and yellow sands of the desert roll away in one direction like ocean billows, while in another the verdant plains with their dark groups of hamlets and silver lakelets left by the last overflow of the Nile and its canals stretch beyond the horizon. Travellers often ascend the Pyramid of Cheops before dawn in order to contemplate the morning sun suddenly lighting up these limitless spaces. The great pyramids face the cardinal points so exactly that the Bedouins of the district perfectly understand how to use these monuments not only in discriminat- ing the seasons, but also in calculating the time of day. At the equinox the rising sun seen in a line with the northern or southern face of the structure presents exactly half of its disc to the view. At the time of the French expedition, Cou- telle, measuring the Pyramid o? Cheops with the compass, calculated that its orientation was perfect. But this was not confirmed by the subsequent and more precise measurements of Nouet ; while the minute observations of Flinders Petrie, continued for a period of several months, have placed it beyond doubt that the two parallel east and west sides, instead of pointing due north, are inclined 3' 40" to the * Exact height from pediment to apex, according to Flindcn Pelrie, 146*7 metres. B w^m^ w m ii ^ > r »i*yiir"j* "m^mtftrnm 404 N0BTH-EA8T AFIUOA. west.* To what cause is this deviation to bo attributed P Is it to bo regarded as the result of an ern)r in the calculation, or has there been a change in the axis of the earth itself, which, instead of being fixed, as formerly supiDosed, has been gra- dually displaced so for to the west ? The blocks used in building the pyramids of Gizeh were drawn from the num- mulitic formations of Torah and Masarah, which skirt the east bank of the Nile, and which still supply the materials required for the enlargement of Cairo since those obtained from the ruins of Memphis have been exhausted. According to the popular legend, the countless fossils in the stones forming the steps of the pyramids are the lentils left by the workmen engaged in erecting them. Formerly Fig. 124.— Thr Sphinx. i the nummulitic blocks were faced by a smooth limestone resembling marble. A portion of these facings even still survives towards the summit of the Pyramid of Khephren, but no trace remains of the hieroglyphics which at one time decorated the surface of these monuments. The passages in the interior, so disposed as to lead treasure-seekers astray, and prevent them from penetrating to the sepulchral chambers, are faced in granite. After long subterranean explorations, archaeologists have at last discovered the sarcophagi of the sovereigns for whom these vast burial-places were prepared. That of Ehuf u is still in situ in its vaulted chamber. The blocks of black granite '.>'■'■■ * Flinders Peine, " The PyraiiiieU and Temples of Giaeh." iii M i i i irw >, i > i |« »i; i|»m i ii i i ii i ) rtf ■^ » i n il i i. i ;| i y. l i|i ll H» i t i' » ii I * « ■ CAIRO. 405 • bo regarded as ^ in the axis of [, has been gra- . from the num- mk of the Nile, . of Cairo since According to be steps of the tiem. Formerly iiJ^^iS;- ing marble. A the Pyramid of ) time decorated ikers astray, and Faced in granite, t dibcovered the were prepared, of black granite wit^ which it is faced are so oxquisitcly polished that by the light of the torches the visitor 8c>es himself roflocted as in a mirror. The tomb of Menkora, or Mycerinus, was excavated in the very rock which served as the original core or nucleus above which the j)yrumid was raised. But the siircophngus which it con- tained was lost when the \mm\ transporting it to England foundered off the Por- tuguese coast. In the angle formed in the north-west, between the two colossal monuments of Cheops and Khephren, the irregular and hilly plateau has been oxcavoted in all directions by the tombs and burial- gounds where repose the subjects of the Pharaohs. To the south and east are other remains, wells, and sepulchres, while on the skirt of the plateau, encircled by dunes, is seen the famous sphinx, gigantic guardian of the pyramids. This prodigious statue, contemplating the plain with motionless eye, seems verily the " marvellous work of the gods," as recorded in an ancient inscription recently deciphered. It consists of a sandstone rock, to which chance had given the vague outlines of an animal figure, ond the form of whioh was completed by the Egyptian architects. The spacious cavities were filled with rough stones disposed without art ; but the surface consists of small and regular layers carefully cut and sculptured, so as to produce the very muscles of the animal, which represents the god Har-em-Ehu, that is to say, " Horns in the bright sun," or " Horus of the two horizons." » > ... v > An inscription discovered by Mariette attributes to Cheops the " restoration " of this monument, on which the natives have conferred the titles of " Father of Fear," and " Lion of the Night." The chamber or rooms said to have been seen by Vansleb and other explorers in the back of the sphinx cannot now be traced. But to the south-west, in the immediate vicinity of the colossus, Mariette brought to light from beneath the sands an underground temple, with enormous pink granite and alabaster walls, faced with the largest limestone' blocks hitherto discovered. This building, destitute of all ornament, seems to date from a period of transition between the early megalithic monuments and edifices properly so called. The statue of Khephren found in this temple, and now preserved in the Bulaq Museum, is perhaps the finest known work of Egyptian statuary. At that period of the national art inflexible forms and conventional types had not yet been imposed by the hieratic laws on the native sculptors. The statue had been hidden, or perhaps thrown into a well, after the erection of the temple. Cairo. Cairo, the heir of Memphis, occupies a situation analogous to that of the old metropolis of Lower Egypt. This " diamond clasp " closing the " fan of the delta," stands like Memphis at the apex of the triangle of alluvial lands formed by the main branches of the river, and consequently occupies the natural converging point of all the routes across Lower Egypt, between Alexandria and El Arish. But although lying near the bifurcation of the Nile, its site has been displaced towards the north with the channel of the river itself. Were it removed to the mmmfmc^'^ i 400 N0IITII-EA8T AFUICA. I fcrH left hunk of the Nile, Ciiiro would form a nimplo northern oxtonsion of Momphis. It woiiUl even Hoem more nuturul thiit the cupitul, like nearly all the other eitie.«* of Middle K^ypt, should Htund on the west side, which coinpriw«H over three-fourths of the ariible lunds, and which givcH more eiisy ucccmh to Alexundriii, the chief out- port of the country. But Cairo is not an Egyptian foundation. It wuh huilt by Asiatic conquerors, who naturally could not think of founding their chief strong- hold on the wrong side of the river for them. Thus the very position of Cairo on the right bank of the Nile suffices to show that Egypt is a conquered land. The name of El-Kahiruh, or the Victorious, officially given to the capital of Egypt, is not current amongst the people themselves. Ma«r, the old name of the whole country, to which is often added the epithet of " Mother of the World," is the expression more usually employed in speaking of the city. Nothing but a small fort bearing the name of Babel un (Babylonia) occupied a site a little above the present capital down to the nineteenth year of the Hegira, when it was captured by Amru. After this event it began to extend northwards by the addition of the El-Fost&t, or "Tent," which afterwards became the Masr el-Atikah, or "Old Cairo." Again besieged and reduced, over three centuries afterwards, it continued still to expand in the same direction by absorbing a third quarter, the so-called military encampment of El-Eaireh. Here was developed the modem city, whose name has been slightly modified to Cairo and other forms in the European idioms. Towards the north-west the right bank of the Nile is skirted by the wretched hovels of Bulaq, a large and industrial suburb now connected with the city by a new avenue lined with buildings. The old walls have been in great part destroyed or overlapped by new structures ; but they are still standing towards the east and south, half buried amid heaps of refuse. The cliffs of the Jebel-Mokattam extend to the south-east angle of the city, where their advanced spurs are crowned with the citadel, which was occupied by the British forces in 1883, immediately after the battle of Tel- el-Kebir. From this eminence, flanked by sustaining walls and ramparts, a view is commanded of the whole city, with its cupolas and minarets, its party-coloured buildings, its groves and gardens. Bound this city of bright colours and throbbing life, stretches the grey and silent plain overlooked from u distance by the pyramids. Cairo had been built on the bank of the Nile ; but since the tenth century the stream has been displaced, and until recently the city was separated from the river by a belt of groves and gardens, nearly two miles broad in some places. It is, however, traversed in its entire length by the narrow Ehalig Canal, which runs dry for a part of the year. The Ismailieh Canal, another and broader channel, deep enough to remain flooded throughout the year, runs north-west of the city in the direction of Suez, through the "Wady-TumilAt. The Nile, 1,320 feet wide between its embankments, is here crossed by a modern iron bridge resting on stone foundations, and continued westwards by a long viaduct across a branch flooded during* the inundations. But for the palms fringing the left bank, the dahabiyeh and other craft moored along the quays, one might almost fancy at the sight of this bridge that he was surveying the outlying quarters of some European city. The whole »n of MomphiH. n othiT ritics of r thrco-fourths , thii nhiof out- It wuH built by ir cbiof Htrong- ion of Cuiro on id lund. tbo capital of Id numo of the World," is the ng but a small ittlo above the t was captured addition of the ikah, or "Old ds, it continued the so-called 3m city, whose *opean idioms. y the wretched I the city by a ; part destroyed da the east and okattam extend e crowned with imediately after ning walls and I and minarets, I city of bright arlooked from a ith century the [ from the river places. It is, lal, which runs reader channel, t of the city in ,3"20 feet wide 'esting on stone 1 flooded during biyeh and other b of this bridge y. The whole ^'. »»«fll»mi I CAIBO -lO? .. t of the new town — which hiin l)c«n coniitnictod IwtwHou the nutivt' (luiirh'r and tJjo Nih* — inoludinf^ ImrrackH, govorninont uflicoH, ihiIuccn, un(>aii aMfn'ct. The vt'^otati<>ti aloiio, un(!h>H4>(I by railiii^H in tho (^urdenH, and thu Hliady lc>lH>k ucaciaH ])laiitutl .>u both siduH of tho broud Htr(f;[ ■m ' .. Pi' . -ftif a ijS' - CAIRO. 409 abitants themsolvee I rickety dwellings, in tho narrow lanes, ecting in picturesque UTES FBOM THEIR il kiijiiiiiiiiii liil feiii "11 1 ting scenes of this ^■ seen chiefly in the )Te the direct traffic " omen, Mussulmans ithes, with nothing exposed except the eyes peeping through a slit in the veil attached to the head- dress by a gold clasp. The country women, dressed in a simple flowing robe, moving freely with the movements of the body, go nearly all unveiled, like their Syrian, Levantine, Jewish, and European sisters, all of whom may bo easily recog- nised by their type, their carriage, dress, style, and manner, as they move amongst the busy crowd, or stop to examine the tempting display of goods in the well- stocked shops. The graceful Nubians in their long white smocks, Bedouins proudly draped in rags and tatters, Negroes of every tribe, each with the distinctive marks of his nationality stamped on his features, intermingle freely with the native Egyptians, distinguished by their official garb and tarbush headdress, with Europeans of every nation still more or less faithful to the costume of Western civilisation ; with soldiers of all arms in helmets, turbans, or other oriental or ancient headdress. Followed by their little donkey-boys shouting and gesticulating, the magniflcent Egyptian asses trot nimbly by, however tall or heavy be their riders. But military chiefs and wealthy strangers prefer the graceful Arab steed, or elegant European equipages, which drive rapidly through the crowd preceded by a sais, or running footman, dressed in the gorgeous Albanian costume bedizened with gold and silk, and armed with the traditional rod, which was formerly freely used to clear the road of loiterers. At times, overtopping the throng, like some magnificent " wise man of the East " out of a painting by Rubens, some Negro captain makes his appearance, clothed in white and red silk, glittering with damascened arms and mounted on a gigantic camel, with its embroidered cloths and velvet housing fringed in gold. At present instances of foreigners being insulted by fanatical Mohammedans are almost unheard of, except when they behave in an offensive manner. They may now move about freely even in the neighbourhood of the El-Azhar mosque, where reside the more zealous champions of Islam. The gay wedding processions and solemn funerals may be followed without any risk through the narrowest byways of the native quarter. The great religious ceremonies, at which Christians could not formerly be present except protected by the police and soldiers, have been shorn of much of their ancient splendour, and certain parts of the original programme are henceforth interdicted. The chief local feast is that of the " Cutting," by which the beneficent waters of the rising stream are admitted to the town canals. But the essentially religious solemnities are those associated with the departure and arrival of the pilgrims from Mecca. At the feast of Mahmal, or the Departure, by the Europeans called the " Carpet Feast," a camel decked with embroidered trappings, plumes, and burnished metal ornaments, bears a sumptuous litter containing the yearly present sent by the Khedive to the Kaaba of Mecca. It is preceded by musicians and troops, and followed by a motley throng of pilgrims of every race and colour. On the return of the sacred caravan, the anniversary is celebrated of the birthday of the Prophet, during which the city is given up to the dervishes, dancers, and jugglers. No more favourable opportunity is afforded for stadpng the varied elements of the popula- tion of Cairo. All the back slums and remote recesses of the native districts now r 410 NOETH-EAST AFKICA. pour forth their Arab, Negro, Abyssinian, Beja, Somali, and Nubian denizens on the public squares and into the great plain near the suburb of liulaq, where the sheikh of the dervishes passes on horseback over a layer of human bodies. The noble animal resists at first, but the bridle being held by two slaves, ho is forced to follow them over this carpet of living flesh. The presence of English troops sum- moned to take part in this feast in the year 1884 served to remind the Mussulmans that henceforth the city of Amru was in the hands of the infidel. The most remarkable monuments of Cairo are its mosques and tombs. Of the four himdred sacred edifices scattered over the city, some are amongst the very finest in the Mohammedan world. The mosque of Tulun, which formed part of the Fost&t settlement before the foundation of Cairo, although falling to ruins, still pre- serves the beauty imparted by the noble simplicity of the original plan — a large open court surrounded on three sides by a double peristyle and leading to a sanctuary with four aisles and pointed arcades built of date wood. Unfortunately the galleries, decorated with charming arabesques, have been closed up and converted into mean refuges for the sick and insane. Sultan Hassan's mosque, the finest in Cairo, and indicated from a distance by its lofty minaret, is three tened, like that of Tidun, with total destruction. At sight of the tottering windows of its high outer walls the visitor almost hesitates to enter the court where the cool fountains still spatter, or to cross the threshold of the sanctuary and lateral aisles beneath the vast porticos tenanted by flocks of birds. The El- Azhar, or " Flowery " mosque, was also originally a simple court enclosed by porticos. But to the primitive structure have been added numerous other buildings, for El- Azhar is now at once a university, a library, a hostelry for studious travellers, a blind asylum, and a refuge for the poor. The roof of the sanctuary is supported by 380 marble, granite, and porphyry columns, some of which formerly embellished the Roman temples in Egypt. Round the court the colonnades are reserved for students, who are here grouped according to their several nationalities. From Marocco to India, from the Niger to the Oxus, all the peoples of Islam are represented in this university, which claims to be the oldest in the world. As many as twelve thousand students, exclusive of the free attendants, here study the Koran, jurisprudence, mathematics, and the Arabic language, under the direction of two hundred professors. In the Riwdk, or group of buildings disposed round the aisles, there are also about a dozen preparatory schools, each with thirty or forty scholars, besides a special school for the blind.* Another mosque, that of Sultan Eal&un, is almost entirely utilised as a mad- house. That of Mohammed Ali, situated within the citadel, is certainly a very sumptuous edifice, with its transparent alabaster pillars and pavement; but its very wealth of ornamentation serves only to illustrate the bad taste of its builder. * Studonta registered at El-Azhar in 1883 „ of the Shafeh rite „ „ Malekitp rite „ Haiieflte rite „ Hambalite ritib . n «> 12,026 Professors, 216 600 . 100 4,000 . 74 1,600 . 37 26 . 1 an denizens on ilaq, where the m bodies. The , he is forced to [sh troops sum- )he Mussulmans tombs. Of the ongst the very med part of the ruins, still pre- plan — a large ^ to a sanctuary ly the galleries, 3rted into mean n a distance by estruction. At ilmost hesitates s the threshold ted by flocks of e court enclosed aumerous other , a hostelry for . The roof of phyry columns, pt. Round the )ed according to j;er to the Oxus, claims to be the sive of the free and the Arabic Riicdk, or group sen preparatory for the blind.* ilised as a mad- certainly a very vement; but its te of its builder. ion, 216 100 : -^ CAIRO. 411 The so-called '* Joseph's Well," sunk near the mosque by order of Yusfif Salah- ed-din (Saladin the Great), descends to the level of the Nile at a depth of 286 feet. From the surface of the ground to about half of this depth a winding incline enables the oxen to reach a landing, whence the water is raised to the top by working a system of buckets. South of the citadel in the direction of Old Cairo, and northward of the fort of the Jebel-Mokattam, other mosques of all sizes raise their graceful domes above Fig. 126.— M08QVB OF MoHAMMcn Au the tombs of kings and princes. These elegant structures present a striking con- trast to the bare ground, here strewn with all manner of debris, and to the rugged walls of the surrounding quarries. The Kait-bey mosque, north of the cluster of hills, dates from the fifteenth century, but has been recently restored. It is, perhaps, the most perfect specimen of Arab architecture in Egypt, at least as regards the arabesque and geometrical designs of its fretted walls, and the exquisite synMnetry of its minaret, disposed in corbelled galleries. Thus the country which i.JifUHJ««- 412 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. boasts of the pyramids and similar structures of unequalled solidity, may also claim to possess in its minarets edifices unrivalled for the elegance and delicacy of their outline. The first city on the African continent in size and population, Cairo also takes the foremost place for its scientific institutions and art treasures. Besides the already described religious university of El-Azhar, and the hundreds of Arab schools attached to the mosques, the city contains excellent European schools, nearly all denominational — Catholic, Coptic, Melkite, Protestant, or Jewish. There are also a school of medicine and pharmacy, a public library, lecture-halls, an observa- tory, a valuable collection of maps and designs, unfortunately damaged when the place was occupied by the British, a geographical society, oud other learned corpora- tions. Btjlaq, Helwan, Matarieh. But the glory of Cairo is its museum of antiquities, established in the suburb of Bulaq on the very embankment here skirting the right side of the Nile. This priceless collection, founded by Mariette, continued by Maspero, and already far too rich for the original building, presents, so to say, a complete and admirably illustrated course of Egyptian history and native art. Besides the thousand objects found in all museums, such as statues, steles, mummies, amulets, jewellery, papyri, it contains amongst other masterpieces the diorite statue of Ehephren in a majestic and placid attitude, the wooden statue of the unknown person whom the Arabs have dubbed the Shiekh-el-Beled, or " Village Chief," the sphinxes of the HyksoSi which so faithfully reproduce the type of those shepherd conquerors. '.' In the court stands the tomb of Mariette, a black marble sarcophagus, standing at the foot of which the visitor beholds the mysterious stream flowing slowly by. Bulaq is the chief industrialtsentre of the capital. Here the Government possesses a large printing-ofiice, military workshops, a foundry, and manufactory of small arms. The river traffic, which formerly had its docks and warehouses at Old Cairo, has now established its chief depdts at Bulaq, where the stream is constantly covered with steamers, sailing vessels, and rowing boats. . What remains of Ibatdt, or Old Cairo, stands rather more than half a mile from liie south-west suburb of Cairo, and is disposed along the right bank of a small branch of the Nile. The ancient splendour of the city is still recalled by a mosque surrounded by heaps of debris. This was the sanctuary erected by Amru in the twenty-first year of the Hegira under the eyes of Mohammed's personal followers. After those of the holy cities no other mosque is more venerated than this venerable monument, which, however, has been frequently restored. Some of the 230 columns which supported the vaults of the galleries and sanctuary built rour> fl u* j central court have given way beneath the weight of the nave. The island which separates Old Cairo from the main channel, and which is mostly under cultivation, takes the name of Jeziret-el-Randah. Here a nephew of Saladin had founded the school of the " Baharites," or " Biverain People," who were the first Mameluks in Egypt. At the southern extremity of Bandah stands the famous , may also claim delicacy of their Cairo also takes es. Besides the indreds of Arab n schools, nearly Irish. There are alls, an observa- naged when the learned corpora- in the suburb of the Nile. This d already far too and admirably thousand objects Bwellery, papyri, ren in a majestic a the Arabs Lave le Hyksos, which phagus, standing awing slowly by. mment possesses ifactory of small ises at Old Cairo, im is constantly half a mile from bank of a small lied by a mosque by Amru in the rsonal followers, in this venerable >me of the 230 ' built rour. J ! i.1 ) 1 which is mostly sphew of Saladin I," who were the bands the famous WifflffilJi'llliilMi'i I ^i!^:ii:!ili':lli 1:1 iiiii^ W' ■:!'! i iiii :!!i!l!llil 1 111,, ■,i|;,i':„l||!,ii|:ii,,,ii| ''liiiiiH 111 'I ';L,;L'Jv:,ii:!!illli::! ■"i|i:lil!|illi! M i 'i iiiiiiiiiiiiiiKiiiiiii •iiliiliii ■f] III :ii««-- 111 I'silESiiiiliiiiliili ^ i ^^ > \ ■■>?• n-::^t, -'r -Mr 4)11 'm\ Iml ii'i , ,|ii y if iwrmrr^^iiifmii^Wf^ BAfillAOE OF TUE NILE. 418 V::', moky&fl, or " Nilomotor," which in somo years is ho anxiously consulted to ascertain tht) progress of the inundations. The ancient Nilomutcr, which has boon replaced by that of Randah, occupied a position farther up on the right bank of the river, over against Memphis. Connected with the capital of Egypt is the watering village of H 'n, which is situated 14 miles to the south by rail, near the right bank of the Nile. Its sulphureous waters, which are slightly thermal (74° to 86° F.), are said to be very efficacious. Numerous palaces are dotted round the village, mostly encircled by parks or gardens, some of which cover some square miles in extent. On the left bank facing Cairo are the palaces of Gizeh and Jezire/i, while to the north of the capital stands the palace of Shulrah, connected with the railway terminus by a magnificent avenue of sycamores, which is lined by pleasant suburban residences. To the north-east, on the verge of the desert, are visible the palaces of El-Kuhbch and Hl-Abbasaieh, at present occupied by the polytechnic and military schools. This palace is not far from the village of Matarieh, which covers part of the site of the ancient " City of the Sun," the Pk-Ra of the Pharaohs, the Heliopolk of the Greeks, where the Egyptian priests came to be initiated into the esoteric doctrines of the national religion. Of this city of temples and schools there remain only the foundations of two enclosures and an obelisk, which was raised by Usortcsen I. forty-six centuries ago, and which since then has gradually subsided over 30 feet into the ground. It is the oldest of all existing obelisks. In the surrounding marshes still survives the species of heron known as the ardea ffarzetta, which has become so famous in the history of symbols and in legend under the name of the phoenix. At intervals of five hundred years, on the day of the summer solstice the sacred bird was fabled to return from Arabia or India, and perch on the summit of the Temple of the Sun. Here it was consiuned on a pyre of scented wood, ever rising from its ashes with renewed life. The village of Matarieh on the right, as well as that of Embabeh on the left bank of the Nile, recalls the memory of some famous battles. At the latter place Bonaparte gained the so-called " Battle of the Pyramids." while a Turkish army was routed by Eleber at Matarieh and in the ruins of Heliopolis. In a delightful garden at Matarieh the Coptic monks show the " Virgin's Tree," a sycamore less than three centuries old, beneath which the Holy Family is supposed to have rested on the flight to Egypt. Matarieh is the oidy place in the delta where ostrich farm- ing is at present carried on. ' "^ .' m.. /^ Barrage o» the Nile. The barrage of the Nile, whose crenellated towers loom in the distance like the battlements of a citadel, must be included amongst the monumental workt^ of the Egyptian capital. Formed of two bridges with one hundred and thirty-four arches altogether and over half a mile — or, including the approaches, more than a mile — long, it runs athwart the stream some 12 miles below Bulaq, at the point where the Nile ramifies into two main branches. Here the intermediate cutting of the 414 NORTU-KAST AFRICA. Hsmi Meimfioh Caniil intersects the liirge iHlimd of Shttliiganeh, which hiiH hcen converted by wuIIh and rumpurtH into a fortified Htronghold. This is the imiM)rtunt fortroBH of Snadteh, which ut onco cominunds both brunches of the Nile, and the two principal lines of railway in Lower Egypt. This colossal work, the first stone of which was laid by Mohammed Ali in the year 1847, was originally planned for the purpose of reclaiming many tens of thousands of acres of waste land and regulating the navigation throughout the whole of Lower Egypt. Hut the enthusiasm of the Albanian viceroy was not sustained by an equal degree of perseverance, and some parts of the general design were either neglected or indifferently executed. Hence the foundations have partly given way, wide openings are visible in many of tho Fig. 127. — Barraob op the Nili. Soole 1 : 110.000. I 8i Miles. arches, and of the three canals, the Sharkieh, Beharah, and Menufieh, that should have been excavated, the last-mentioned alone has been completed. Nevertheless even in its present unfinished state tho barrage of the Nile is by no means an altogether useless work, the lamentable monument of an aimless prodi- gality, as it has been so often described. It serves at least every year to raise by 6 or 7 feet the water level of the main stream. According to the English engineer Fowler, a farther outlay of about one million sterling would be needed to raise the level by 16 feet, as originally intended, to strengthen tho foundations, and complete the system of canalisation. But at the same time it would be also necessary to modify the original plan, in order to prevent the constant accumula- tions of sedimentary matter above the barrage, or else construct navigable canals along this section of the Nile. . j ■■JWWI^tHKIf^f" H boon converted u|M>rtunt fortroBH Ic, and the two the first Htone of f planned for the d and re}][uhiting nthuHittsm of the eranco, and some xecuted. Hence D in many of tho Greenwich ufieh, that should i. of the Nile is by an aimless prodi- rery year to raise g to the English ould be needed to foundations, and it would be also instant accumula- t navigable canals SUEZ. Suez. 4\S Before tho opening of tlio Huez Cunul, Cairo was cnnnort Feet. 2H Feet and ujnnrda. i.__-_- Si Bliln. southern extremity of the marine canal, has replaced the Clyama of the Greeks, the Kolzim of the Arabs, which has by some archsBologists been identified with the Tell-Kohum, lying nearly four miles farther north, and by others with the station of Arsitwe, afterwards known as Cleopatria, whose site has been sought farther east, not far from the village of Ayerut. |» 1 1 1 i f^J ,;» 410 NOBTU-EAHT AFllK'A. TriuH'H of tho f(>rn»('r prcwiico of tim wiitcrH of tho R«>(I Sni may horo Ix) »till traccHl all iho wuy to tho liittur LukcH. Tho watorH hiivo griuluully rotirod, uiid il' i\w town hud to foll«>w tho pni^nmH of HuhHidoiico it wouhl huvo to Im^ again diH- ]>hic(t for tho rot ton und tho oon'tiU of tliiN rogion of tho delta is tho |M)puluuN city of Ziignziij, whioh iH-oupioM u ooiitrul ])<>Niti()n at tho junction of Mtvoral liuoM of railway, over uguinNt tho woMtorn outlot of Wiwiy-Tuniiliit. Tho IK)pulation of thiH ]iluoo ban incrouwd fivefold Hinco tho yoar IHtJO, thunliH chiofly to tho dovolopuiont oi tho (;otton plan tut ionn. Houth of the /aguzig gariloiiH a number of high inoundH, o«)lloctivoly known by tho name of Ti ll-il-lUtHtah, Htill rocall tho auciout city of Pahmt, tho liubmliit of tho (IrookH, whioh w * tho capital of Kgypt Honio twonty-Movon or twonty-oight cen- turioH ago ; that i« to say, during tho twenty-Nocond dyuuHty, when tho frequent Fig. 129.— Enthanci ok tmh Waiiy-ThmilIt, Tici.i.-iil-Kbhib< Bokl* 1 : «40,000. 6 MUM. wars with Assyria required the centre of gravity of the kingdom to be shifted more towards the east. Broken shafts and sculptured blocks still scattered about attest the former splendour enjoyed by this now ruined city. North-east of it, on the very verge of the wilderness and on the last irrigating canals derived from the Nile, lies the village of Karaim, surrounded by palm- groves which have the reputation of yielding the finest dates iu Egypt. TeLL-EL-KeBIK — PiTHOM. The entrance of the "Wady-Tumil&t is guarded on the west by the station of Tell-el-Kebir, that is, the " Great Mound," where in the year 1882 the Egyptian forces under Arabi vainly attempted to make a stand against the British expedition advancing from Ismailia, its base on the Suez Canal. The fortifications erected by ■ 27— AF. .;.-:■'....... :,.,_;_,:,.„_..::-,.__.. 418 NOETH-EAST AFRICA. m> Arabi were partly stormed, partly outflanked, after a midnight march planned with a skill and executed with a precision seldom surpassed in the annals of European warfare. A palace standing in the neighbourhood of ToU-el-Kebir forms the central point of the so-called " Farm of the Wady," a domain about 25,000 acres in extent, which was cultivated for several years by the Suez Canal Company. Near the eastern extremity of the Wady-Tumil&t other mounds collectively known as the Tell-el-Maskhata, and in appearance resembling Tell-el-Kebir, were hitherto supposed to indicate the site of the ancient Pithom, the " City of Treasure," here erected by the captive Israelites for Ramses II. Recently, however, M. Naville has thoroughly explored these ruins, which now appear not to be those of the city of Ramses, but of another which has been identified as the Pi- Turn or Pithom of Exodus, and which seems to have been built about the same period and by the same hands. During the Greek and Roman epochs Pithom was known by the name of Hero, or Heroonpolis. This identification of the ruins explored by M. Naville at Tell«el-Maskhata, has given rise to much controversy amongst Egyptologists, one of whom goes so far as to say that " the Pithom of the Exodus is apparently as far to seek as ever."* Dr. Ebers, however, who is one of the chief authorities on archaeological questions of this sort, after carefully sifting all the evidence, finally decides in favour of M. Naville's view. In a long communication to the Academy he writes, "Now I have attentively and impartially studied the inscriptions excavated by M. Naville, and fully discussed them in the Allgemeine Zeitung, after having gained the firm convic- tion that Tell-el-Maskhata is the site on which, in the time of Ramses and subse- quently, there was a city called by the sacred name of Pi-Tum, i.e. Pithom, and by the profane one of Thuku-t, being doubtless the same as Succoth. It is true that Sir Gardner Wilkinson, Dr. Lepsius, M. Maspero, and myself as well, had regarded Tell-el-Maskhata as the site of the biblical Ramses. After the appearance of M. Nuville's book, however, there will scarcely be found a single Egyptologist who will still adhere to this view, and refuse to look upon TeU-el-Maskhata as the site of an Egyptian town which bore the sacred name of Pithom and the profane one of Thuku-t. The first object confirming this view was the inscription on the statue of the prophet of Tum of Theka, which begins, ' When under his majesty it was proclaimed how the sanctiiary of his father Tum of the good god of Thekut was completed on the third of the month of Athyr, the king himself come to the district of Heroonpolis, into the house of his father Turn,' &c. . " These inscriptions render it so certain that Pithom and Thuku-t were one and the same town, and that both were built on the site of the modern Tell-el-Maskhata, that we may dispense with the further evidence afEorded by the Anastasi papyrus. Hero King Memeptah, very probably the Pharaoh of tho Exodus, states in writing his having permitted the Shasu (Bedouins) of Atuma (Edom P) to cross the fortress bearing his name, which was also called Theku, in the direction of the ponds of Pithom of the king Memeptah, which is called Theku." t • ^Me««M««, April, 1886, No. 2994. '. - •<' f -^«<«fe»»«y, May 23rd, 1886, p. 373. m Jf:^0tn-iif'U i * ' V t < i^f t^'ik i 1til§0 $ ^ l f t ^ ii , i lji*«>MMJ ii T »fWi!> !p f «y. i ^. l»i « '>l iW i ; 'iHij t ^ ^w^ oarch planned with mnals of European sl-Kebir forms the tout 25,000 acres in I Company, nounds collectively Tell-el-Kebir, were ' City of Treasure," mtly, however, M. • not to be those of as the Pi- Turn or ;he same period and bom was known by ell-el-Maskhata, has (vhom goeR so far as leek as ever,"* Br. Logical questions of es in favour of M. vrites, "Now I have by M. Naville, and ned the firm convic- Ramses and subse- i.e. Pithom, and by oth. It is true that IS well, had regarded le appearance of M. 5 Egyptologist who iiaskhata as the site d the profane one of tion on the statue of his majesty it was god of Thekut was limself came to the huku-t were one and rn Tell-el-Maskhata, he Anastasi papyrus, ius, states in writing ) to cross the fortress tion of the ponds of 23rd, 1886, p. 373. PORT SAID. IsMAILlA — PJl-KaNTARA. 419 At Neflah, in the same district, the road and the Freshwater Canal running to Suez turn towards the south-east, whilst another branch of the canal takes a north- easterly direction to the new city of hmailia, on the shores of Lake Timsah. While the great canal was in progress Ismailia enjoyed great importance as a chief centre of the supplies for the hands engaged on the works. But at present it is far too extensive for its reduced population. Its open spaces are deserted, and its streets, fringed by shady trees and skirted here and there by gardens and shrubberies, resemble the avenues of a park more than the thoroughfares of a commercial town. Nevertheless, Ismailia might again become inhabite II ^l| **» jj P H! , . iN i Ui ii l> i i>^i i> . ' >rty>i i(y ) i>j i | ^^ EL-ARISH— PELUSIUM-SAN. 421 wn stretches the Infidels" has y surrounded by eh, which is here city. ocks of concrete astern 6,300 feet L£J e in extent, which which in front of 3 of 175 acres for ost depots of coal, )n the southern or truction and repair of vessels, and especially of the d 'edges employed in the canal. Here there is an incessant movement of steamers, } twls, and other craft plying from bank to bank, while larger shipping is moored near the quays, and men-of-war cast anchor in the roadstead near the lighthouse. Although situated on Egyptian territory, Port Said is a European, or rather a French city, as regards its inhabitants, its social life, and local traffic. French is the dominating language, and in it instruction is imparted to the fifteen hundred pupils of the rival establishments opened here by the Capuchin friars and the Freemasons. Port Said is the healthiest place in Lower Egypt. By means of cast-iron pipes it derives its water supply from the Ismailia Canal at the rate of about 35,000 cubic feet a day, a quantity which barely suffices for the >frants of the inhabitants, leaving nothing for irrigation purposes. Hence the surrounding gardens languish, and the great want of the place is avenues of shady trees, such as have been planted at Ismailia. Hitherto the Suez Canal Company has in vain made every e£fort to obtain the concession of a canal derived directly from the Damietta branch of the Nile, although it has offered in return to give commercial unity to Egypt by connecting its seaport with the local railway system by means of a branch constructed across Lake Menzaleh. Fearing to be supplanted by Port Said, Alexandria employs all its influence, to check the progress of its eastern rival, which nevertheless cannot fail sooner or later to acquire the commercial supremacy, thanks to its spacious and convenient harbour, and to its situation at the northern extremity of the inter-oceanic canal.* ' El-Arish — Pelxjsium— San. East of Port Said Egypt still possesses a group of habitations which, as tho chief town of a province, may claim the title of city. This is El-Arinh, which stands on an eminence commanding the approach to a wady, usually regarded as the natural frontier between Egypt and Palestine, at the exact centre of the concave bend here developed by the Mediterranean coast-line. But of the ancient cities, situated in this north-eastern district of Egypt no vestige can now be discovered, everything having been thickly overlaid by alluvial deposits. Of Pelmium, the " City of Mud," nothing is visible, except a mound in the midst of the swamps, not far from a depression once flooded by the Pelusiac branch of the Nile. Farther west the two islands Tenneh and Tunah have nothing to show except shapeless heaps of refuse. More important remains, however, have been left by San, or Tanis, which under the name of Ha-war, or Avaria, was the ancient capital of the " Shepherd Kings," and at one time one of the great cities of Egypt. The mound standing near the southern shore of Lake Menzaleh still bears • Shipping of Port Said, exclusive of reaaels in transit, in 1H80, Hccording to Amici :— Arrivals 1,507 rcssolH of 997,611 tons. %, Departures .... 1,630 „ 997,396 „ t^i 3,037 1,996,006 422 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. the ruins of three temples ; and hero have been discovered columns, obelisks, and the remarkable sphinxes which represent the type of the Hyksos, with their broad features, large nose, and prominent cheek-bones. All these monuments were executed in materials far more costly than similar works in Upper Egypt. The building-stone for the temples was brought by Ramses II., not from the nummulitic or sandstone rocks lying nearest to the delta, but from the pink granite quarries of Assuan, on the southern frontier of the empire. But of these sumptuous edifices, whoso remains lie strewn over the mound at San, nothing was respected by subsequent generations of builders, whether Romans, monks, Christians, or Arabs. Not one of the fourteen obelisks, the largest in all Egypt, has survived ; while the colossi have been broken into small fragments and even ground to dust. Amongst the ruins, however, has been discovered the precious " Stone of San," a tri-lingual stele which might have revealed the mystery Fig. 131.— Thb San Mohass. Scale 1 : 460,000. K Hooded for eight or nine months. Flooded daring the liaiiig of the Nile. OMileg. of the hieroglyphics, had not ChampoUion and Young already found a clue to their interpretation in the " Rosetta Stone." I •: ;* Ve The enclosure surrounding the great temple is no less than 80 feet thick,* and the modern observer may well ask how such a metropolis could have been raised in the midst of these half-submerged lands, these swamps, and quagmires, and saline depressions now skirting Lake Menzaleh. But the district seems to have un- doubtedly undergone vast changes since the oldest recorded times, changes which should probably be attributed to local subsidence. ; ' • • : Although the less copious of the two Nilotic branches enclosing the delta, that of Damietta is utilised to a fat greater extent for irrigation purposes, thanks to the higher level of its bed. Along its course are situated some large towns, while in many places numerous villages form an almost continuous city. Bcnha-r-Asml, or the " City of Honey," which supplies the inhabitants of Cairo with considerable • Flinders Petrie, Timet, April 24, 1884. ; iiiiiiliiiiiii^ • »■ - ■ssts W > » ii |I M r Kl « ^ «t » J l niM W " MANSUEAH— DAMIETTA. 42B DB, obelisks, and ivith their broad tly than similar ivas brought by •est to the delta, frontier of the over the mound uilders, whether lisks, the largest small fragments 1 discovered the lied the mystery 31° ^^3^ S' S^S :t£Bl/V# -....^Jyf.. !*.' ' "*•■ "^ O '"'...."■'•■■ .1... ■•"••<•..:" 50' ^ ■*■• ..i...t» '55' SS" riio. id a clue to their li feet thick,* and re been raised in nires, and saline ms to have un- I, changes which g the delta, that es, thanks to the towns, while in knha-r-Asml, or ith considerable quantities of this commodity, with the other produce of its gardens and orchards, derives some importance from its position ot the converging point of the three lines of railway between Alexandria, Cairo, and Zagazig. Here the river is traversed by a long viaduct. Near the station another " tell " or mound of ruins, situated like the modem town on the right bank of the Damietta branch of the Nile, is all that now remains of the ancient Athnbia. Mansurah — Damiktta. Mit Qhamr and Ziftah, which face each other on both banks of the river, are amongst the most popiilous cities of the delta. Lower down on the right bank Samanhud, the Sebenuytoa of the Greeks, and the birthplace of Manetho, the his- torian, possesses in the neighbourhood the remains of a temple, the Iseum of Ptolemy Philadelphus, which is now known by the name of Behheit-el-Hagar. Mansurah, or the " Victorious," which follows on the right bank, preserves no monuments of the past, but is one of the most commercial and industrious cities in Egypt, and capital of a province. It was here that the French King Louis IX. fell into the hands of the Mohammedans. Twenty-nine years previously — that is, in 1221 — the Crusaders had been defeated in the same place, and it was to commemo- rate these triumphs of the Crescent over the Cross that the " Victorious " was founded. At Mansurah the Bahr-es-Sogbeir channel branches off from the Nile, and flows to Lake Menzaleh, which it has divided into two basins by a peninsula formed of its alluAdal deposits. At the extremity of this low marsh-encircled peninsula stand the two towns of Menzaleh and Matarieh, inhabited by poor commimities of fisher- men, whose type, according to Marietta, betrays their lineal descent from the Hyksos, who overran Egypt thousands of years ago. The profits of these fisheries are almost entirely forestalled by the sheikhs of Matarieh, some of whom have become millionaires. -r:.. -• - ' *" ^ „:^. .■.,-. • Damietta, or Dumiat, which gives its name to the east branch of the Nile, still remains the largest city on its banks. However, it does not stand on the same site as its Greek predecessor Tamiathia, which stood on the left bank quite close to the mouth of the river. But immediately after the unsuccessful siege laid to the place by Louis IX., Sultan Bibars caused it to be demolished, and removed the inhabitants some six miles farther up, to a point less accessible to an enemy arriving by sea, and near an abrupt bend in the channel, which might easily be defended against a hostile fleet. The modern Damietta manufactures various kinds of textile fabrics and does a considerable trade in rice, salt, and fish. Here, also, vessels engaged in the coast- ing trade between Syria, Asia Minor, and the JEgean Sea, come for their supplies of provisions, which they take in exchange for various manufactured goods.* But Movement of the Poit of Damietta in 1880, according to Amici :— ' J 1,198 shipa of 83,216 tons. Arrivala Departures Total M76 2,374 79,996 163,2n 484 NOETH-BAST AFRICA. the entrance to the harbour is danjjerous, and shipping is sometimes prevented by the rough seas for days together from entering the river. The great mosque of Damietta, built by Amru, aad remarkable especially for the richness and variety of its marbles, is indebted for the exceptional celebrity it enjoys to its " miraculous " column still covered with clotted blood and dry foam. According to the local tradition, all invalids who come with sufficient faith and lick the stone till 'their tongue bleeds are sure to recover. Nevertheless, the recent history of Damietta has Fig. 132.— Damibtta. Scale 1 . mjOUO. \Z\'A*: ai'sa- - . 8,800 yard.. - V*,-^--.-'r\'^.,^^^^i^iJ--.'^ made it sufficiently evident that a far more efficacious way of getting rid of epidemics would be to sweep the streets clean of the filth encumbering them at every turn. In an often inundated plain which stretches south-west of the city in the direction of Lake Burlos, there is another holy place, where miracles continue to be wrought, not, however, by Mussulman hajis, but by a female Christian saint. This is the Coptic convent of Setti-Damiana, or " Our Lady Damian." Menuf, Tantah. .:-."'■■■.. j...i' .:■:■: '.'y In the part of the delta comprised between the two branches of Damietta and Rosetta, a few commercial towns are scattered in the midst of the canals and irriga- tion works. Such are Menu/, which gives its name to the large Menufieh Raya, or canal, where have been found the fragments of a trilingual stone, Shibin-el-Kour, I l^; lp l lf« nes prevented by great mosque of 388 and variety of its " miraculous " ling to the local le stone till 'their yr of Damietta has ig rid of epidemics a at every turn, f the city in the files continue to be istian saint. This !s of Damietta and ) canals and irriga- Menufieh Raya, or ne, Shibin-el-Kour, TEURANEII— HAlfl— KUAFF. 42fi lyinp^ in n laf^on whose winding waters (liHuharfi;<> thnnxolvoH into Lako Hurlos; Tanfah, ii city of morclmntH ; MahalM-el-Kcbir, or the "Orcut City," which formerly enjoyed a monopoly of the JCgyptiuu silk industry, und whoso acutterod (jimrters are Hurroundcd by cotton plantations. Of all the towns of the delta, Tantah, capital of the province of Garbieh, occupies the most central position. It stands exactly midway between Cairo and Alexandria, as well as between the Rosotta and Damietta branches of the Nile. Hero converge and intersect each other canals, roods, and highways. To these causes, combined with the great reputation enjoyed by the mosque of Seid-el-Radawi, the greatest saint of the Egyptian Mussulman calendar, is to bo attributtnl the excep- tional importance enjoyed by the annual fairs held at Tantah. In the eyes of the pilgrims the pool which receives the sweepings of the mosque possesses healing properties rivalling those of the Damietta column itself. In population, olso, Tantah competes with Damietta for the third place amongst the cities of Egjrpt. Hero is also the famous £1- Ahmadi School, which, next to that of El-Azhar at Cairo, holds the first rank amongst all the Arab schools in the country. In the year 1877 it numbered as many as 4,885 scholars. Terraneh, Sais, Fuah. On the Rosetta branch, which is skirted for half its course by a line of railway, itself fla; ked by the first swellings of the Libyan range, the only important town is that from which this channel takes its name. Terraneh, perhaps the ancient Torenuthis, is the chief depot for the natron collected in the saline lake of the Wady- Natrun, near the convent of Saint Macorius. Teirieh, which lies farther down, at the outlet of the narrow belt of cultivated lands here stretching between the hills and the left bank of the Nile, has also succeeded to an ancient city whose ruins are visible on the neighbouring Tell-el-Odameh, or " Bone Mound." -> Kafr-el-Za'iat, where the railway between Cairo and Alexandria crosses the river on a long bridge of twelve arches, has no old Egyptian remains in its immediate neighbourhood. But about twelve miles farther down, on the same east side of the Rosetta branch, are situated the extensive ruins of Sfi *he Sais of the Qreeks, and now called Sa-el-Hagar by the fellahtn. Sa, whioh was the capital of Egypt at the time of the Persian invasion under Cambyseri, is perhaps one of those places which ought to be held in the gfreatest veneration by all mankind ; for, according to the legend, from this city set out the colonists who foimded Athens, bringing with them the image of the goddess Neith, who became the Athena of the Qreeks and the Minerva of the Romans. From Sa also came the legendary Danaidse, who first brought under cultivation the thankless soil o^ Argos, so different from their native plains enriched by the inundations of the Nile. Of the old sanctuaries of Sais little remains except heaps of refuse, and its tombs now yield to the treasure-seeker but few objects of interest. But its enclosure still excites surprise at its enormous pr ^portions. It is no less than 420 NORTII-KAST AKRKA. 82 fwt hipli and 53 foot thick. Tlin holy lukc which formerly oxiHted here in now a more nwunip. liolow Ih'HHiik — whoro tho river is HpnnnoHo fuiiH wn of Ftmh, or junction of tho ition with Alox- of Cairo in the it from which it turbutihuH. 1, capital of the above its mouth, [lod its period of 3t frequented in every part of the >f export.* The \i the remains of 80 in Rosctta is )r granite, taken in the hands of eries of supreme sar 1799 by the it some distance eciouB tri-ling^al >rtal, bom of the 1 in the British ns that the tides B then obliged to >ply of this indis- d to examine the )ply for the town, jeen stopped, and , a point beyond 9 delta is watered by cuniiU dcrivM from the main Ktronm. Tloro th«' plainM ar(> irrigated by tln> iMuriut, Abti-Dibat, l)atnatiahur, and Motmudich CaiialH, with iiinuincraltir siiiallor chunnols, all of whicli diMhargo their wutors into Lukeu Mariiit and Kdku. DAMANAiirR — Kakr-Dwar. Damanahur, consisting of a group of numerous hamlotH, in tho capital of this region of arable landn, where tho tall chiinneynof tho cotton-cloanning factories alnioHt out- number tho minarets of tho moHijucH. Between Damanahur and Alexandria this part of the delta is connected with the seaboard by a narrow isthmus, wliero road, railway, and canal aro uU alike protected by embankments against tho waters of Lakes Abukir and Mariut. This strip of land is one of " tho gates of Egypt." Accordingly during tho late military insurrection Arubi Pasha caused the approaches fn)m this direction to bo blocked from bank to bank by the K({fr-Dwor embank- ments. Instead of forcing these lines the English General Wolsoley took them in flank and rear by suddenly embarking his forces ond re-landing them at Ismailia on tho Suez Canal, whence he advanced into the heart of Egypt by the opposite gate of tho Wady-Tumil&t. Tho suuuchs of this manouuvro was complete. Tho formid- able Kafr-Dwar lines became useless, and Arabi was comi)olled hastily to withdraw his army to defend the approaches from the Suez Canal, this movement being followed by his crushing defeat at Toll-el- Kobir. Canopis — AnuKiR. North of the Kafr-Dwar isthmus Rosetta is connected with tho peninsula of Alexandria by another belt of narrow land, which is also utilised by a lino of rail- way, and which passes by the little dune-encircled town of Edkit, or Edk6. At the outlet of Lake Abiikir the Maodieh, that is to say, the ford or passage, indicates the course of the ancient Canopic branch of the Nile, the most westerly of all the (ieven fluvial ramifications. Canopis, whence this branch took its name, has left only some doubtful remains on a spot frequently washed by the surrounding waters. Throughout the whole of the maritime tract adjacent to the Maudieh ford, the sands have swallowed up the sites of ancient structures, which have also served to supply materials for building the neighbouring villages of Mandarah, Abukir, and others. Abukir, situated on the shore of the bay to which it gives its name, probably on the very spot formerly occupied by the town of Zephyrion and the temple of Arsinoe Aphrodite, is a small but busy seaport, far better known, however, for its historic associations than for its local trade. It was in the Abukir waters that in the year 1798 Nelson destroyed the French fleet, thereby cutting off all communi- cation between the conquerors of Egypt and the mother country. And although next year Bonaparte was still strong enough to annihilate a Turkish army which 428 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. I had disembarked at this place, the fruits of Nelson's famous victory were soon after reaped by the total failure of the expedition, and the surrender of the French forces to the British after the battle of Alexandria. Alexandria. Alexandria, one of the great trading places of the world, and the second city of Egyp^ and the African continent in size and population, is also one of the most remarkable *or the originality of its form. Its outline, however, has been greatly modified since the period when, some twenty-two centuries ago, the obscure town of lihacolis received from the Macedonian conqueror the world-renowned name which it has borne ever since. At this point of the coast the rocky marine belt running in the direction from south-west to north-east has been broken by two wide breaches. Thus was created an island, under shelter of which the fleets of Phoeni- cians and Greeks formerly rode at anchor. Such was the famous island of Pharos, already mentioned in the Homeric poems. When Dinocrates laid out the city of Alexandria on new lines, he did not dispose the temples and palaces along the continental coast-line, which here pro- jected to a point in the direction of the island standing at a distance of over 1,500 yards from the mainland. But Ptolemy Soter, one of the first sovereigns of the Greek dynasty, bridged over the intervening space by means of the so-called " Seven Stadia Embankment," leaving two open channels of communication between the two harbours that were thus created. The channels have been gradually obliterated and the causeway enlarged, partly no doubt in conse- quence of marine deposits, but much more by the action of the Greek and Italian vessels, which throughout the whole of the Middle Ages were accustomed to dis- charge their ballast of stones in the Alexandrian waters. At present the causeway has been transformed to a strip of land over 1,300 yards broad connecting the site of the ancient city with the north-east part of the former island of Pharos. Here is now situated the " Turkish quarter," a labyrinth of irregular and winding lanes, pierced here and there by a few broad modem thoroughfares. The island thus changed to a peninsxila has itself become covered with streets, houses, barracks, depots, palaces, and buildings of all sorts. At its south-western extremity stands the lofty tower of the modem lighthouse, the successor of the famous " Pharos " of Ptolemy Philadelphus, a monument of white marble in the form of a step pyramid, which originally stood at the opposite end of the island, and which was regarded by the ancients as one of the " seven wonders " of the world. Masudi, who saw the ruins of this structure, says that in his time it was still " four hundred cubits high," and according to Mahmud Bey it rose to an elevation of over 400 feet. No vestiges are now visible of the light- house, whose very site has been washed away by the marine waters. Nor has the neighbouring fort which bears its name even been constructed with the materials of a monuDient whose name alone survives as the common designation of all light- houses throughout the Greek and Latin seafaring communities. ■"*v!'*^'St'>#iitS^ nHpfijiiirtMf^JP' ■■ ' l iii i ij^fllii^aiii^' w^^ m*^ victory were soon inder of the French ALEXANDRIA. 429 While the alluvia brought by the marine currents were developing the isthmus of the " Heptastadium," which was further enlarged and elevated by the ruins of a city more than once destroyed and rebuilt, the other parts of the neighbouring ad the second city Iso one of the must ir, has been g^reatly the obscure town of owned name which narine belt running oken by two wide he fleets of Phoeni- us island of Pharos, V lines, he did not ne, which here pro- a distance of over e first sovereigns of ins of the so-called of communication hannels have been o doubt in conse- 5 Greek and Italian accustomed to dis- of land over 1,300 trth-east part of the uarter," a labyrinth , few broad modem jelf become covered f all sorts. At its jm lighthouse, the monument of white at the opposite end one of the " seven ructure, says that in f to Mahmud Bey it isible of the light- aters. Nor has the [ with the materials Ration of all light- Fig. 133.— Abukir and Ai-bxandria. Soale 1 : 800,000. 50'I0' Feet. Depths. 82 to SO Feet. 80 to 160 Feet. , 6 Miles. 160 Foet and upward*. V *. x-'ii^Vi J:,.ii seaboard appear to have undergone the opposite movement of subsidence during the same historic period. Roads, quays, old quarries, tombs excavated in the cliffs along the adjacent coast, as well as the works known by the name of " Cleo- patra's Baths," are still constantly encroached upon by the marine waters, even f^mmmffrnm f^ 4B0 NOBTH-EAST AFRICA. when they are at their lowest level. In spite of the extensive operations carried out by the engineers employed by Mohammed Ali, it was foimd impossible to drain Lake Mariut, which the English had created in 1801 by opening three or four channels in the intervening strip of coast skirting the west side of Lake Abukir. It requii-ed sixty-six days to flood this depression, which in certain places has a present depth of seven feet. It will certainly prove an arduous undertaking to recover for agriculture a district 150,000 acres in extent, lacustrine in its lowest parts, swampy round its margin, where 150 villages are said to have stood before the irruption of the waters which converted Alexandria into an insidar city. After the marine floods have been drained off it will be necessary to get rid of the excessive saline particles by drenching all the depressions of the basin with fresh water drawn from the Mahmudieh Canal. At the time of Strabo the Mareotis vineyards yielded one of the choicest wines throughout the whole of the Mediter- ranean seaboard. In this lake a port had been excavated for shipping aU the produce brought down by the Nilotic canals from the interior of the country. At present the basin is no longer available for navigation, and the Mahmudieh Canal, instead of discharging into it, skirts its shores between two embankments. The "European City," stretching west and south of the Turkish quarter, occupies very nearly the exact site of the city built by Dinocrates and the Ptole- mies. Its broad straight streets form a rogular and compact mass of buildings, merging towards the north-east in some modern suburbs, whose chief thoroughfare is the old Canopic highway leading direct to Rosetta. But within the limits of the modem city no traces are any longer visible of its ancient predecessor. All that still survived at the close of the last century, when the population had dwindled to scarcely more than six thousand souls, has been demolished by the builders of the new quarters that have since sprung up, since the revival of its former prosperity. A few fragments of sculptures have alone been rescued and preserved in public or private collections. The site of the Soma, the magnificent tomb of Alexander, and the position of the famous observatory, associated with the illustrious names of Eratosthenes, Hipparchus, and Ptolemy the geographer, are subjects of discussion among archaeologists. The traces are vainly sought of the no less renowned museum and library, where Euclid and Erasistratus taught, which were frequented by Theocritus, Aratus, Callimachus, and Lucian, and where had been accumulated as many as seven hundred thousand volumes, all consumed during the wars of Ceesar in Egypt. Another equally famous library stood near the Temple of Serapis, beyond the limits of the present city. But it is matter of history how the fanatical Egyptian monks, armed with the edict issued by the Emperor Theodosius, proceeded in Alexandria and throughout the whole of Egypt to systematically destroy the temples, overthrow the statues, and commit to the flames all the papyri and treasures of art inherited from the remotest antiquity. Thus perished the library, in which had been carefully collected all the masterpieces of Hellenic science and poetry. Er ■I iin i!i .( ii | ;iiiii ii i mm l uniji i ."^^ I . f n i» i;» h » » |Km"' i % i ^ ii | i ij ru ii fn 'ii **im9f'Ky*04t>*^ ALEXANDEIA. 431 jcrations carried id impossible to )pening three or !st side of Lake irtain places has I undertaking to ne in its lowest ave stood before an insiilar city, to get rid of the basin with fresh bo the Mareotis of the Mediter- shippiug all the ihe country. At ahmudieh Canal, kments. lurkish quarter, s and the Ptole- Eiss of buildings, lief thoroughfare bin the limits of iredecessor. All I population had tmolished by the ;he revival of its been rescued and , the magnificent sociated with the ! geographer, are ily sought of the tus taught, which I, and where had es, all consumed rapis, beyond the matical Egyptian us, proceeded in sally destroy the [ the papyri and ished the library, ilenic science and " At that time," writes the eloquent historian of the Decline and Fall of the Eoman Empire, "the archiepiscopal throne of Alexandria was filled by Theophilus, the perpetual enemy of peace and virtue ; a bold, bad man, whose hands were alternately polluted with gold and with blood. His pious indignation was excited by the honours of Serapis ; and the insults which he offered to an ancient chapel of Bacchus convinced the pagans that he meditated a more important and dangerous enterprise. In the tumultuous capital of Egypt the slightest provoca- tion was sufiicient to inflame a civil war. The votaries of Serapis rose in arms at the instigation of the philosopher Olympius, who exhorted them to die in the Fig. 134. — Alexandria. 8flalBl:7^000. Deiitha. 0to82Fe«t. i» Feet and npwarda. ^^— 2,200 Tordi. defence of the altars of the gods. These pagan fanatica fortified themselves in the temple of Serapis, repelled the besiegers by daring sallies and a resolute defence, and by the inhuman cruelties which they exercised on their Christian prisoners obtained the last consolation of despair. The efforts of the prudent magistrate were usefully exerted for the establishment of a truce till the answer of Theodosius should determine the fate of Serapis. But when a sentence of destruction against the idols of Alexandria was pronounced, the Christians set up a shout of joy and exultation, whilst the unfortunate pagans retired with hasty and silent steps, and eluded by flight or obscurity the resentment of their enemies. Theophilus ■'"=:"«&;,. 482 NOKTU-EAST ATEICA. proceeded to demolish the temple of Serapis without any other difficulty than those which he found in the weight and solidity of the materials. But these ohjects proved so insuperable, that he was obliged to leave the foundations, and to content himself to reduce the edifice itself to a heap of rubbish, a part of which was soon afterwards cleared away to make room for a church in honour of the Christian martyrs. The valuable libriary of Alexandria was pillaged and destroyed, and ner r twenty years afterwards the appearance of the empty shelves excited the regret and indignation of every spectator whose mind was not totally darkened by religious prejudice. The colossal statue of Serapis was involved in the ruin of his temple and religion." On the eminence where the Serapeum has left nothing but a shapeless heap of debris, a solitary pillar about 100 feet high still stands like a monument of death amid the surrounding decay. This is the pillar popularly known as " Fompey's Column," although if not actually built, it was certainly restored in honour of the Roman Emperor Diocletian. Originally it may probably have formed part of the Serapeum. The capital has been hollowed out, either to receive the pedestal of some statue, or possibly in early Christian times to serve as an aerial chamber for some Egyptian rival of Simon Stylites. Near the beach to the north-west of the city, the proximity of ancient ruins was till lately indicated by an obelisk of pink granite usually known as "Cleopatra's Needle," although it was originally brought from Heliopolis and re-erected in Alexandria during the reign of Augustus, consequently some time subsequent to the death of the Egyptian queen. A few years ago it was again transported, this time to London, where it now adorns the new granite embankment on the left side of the Thames. Another " needle," after lying for some generations half buried in the sands, has been removed to the New World, ambitious to have her share in the spoils of Egypt. ' Presented by the Egyptian Government to the municipality of New York, it has been set up in the Central Park of that city. The equestrian statue of Mohammed Ali, standing on the elongated " Consul's Square " in the heart of the European quarter, is a sorry compensation for all the works of art wantonly destroyed in post times. The city was even again threatened with destruction during its bombardment by f^e English in the year 1882. On. this occasion Fort Cafarelli was demolished by the British gnus, and after the attack the work of destruction was continued during the aight by incendiaries and plunderers, instigated by Mahommedan fanaticism. Even two years after the catas- trophe some of the best-built and wealthiest quarters still presented a lamentable appearance. Enormous heaps of rough stonework, the remains of ruined houses, lined both sides of the streets, where every gust of wind raised dense clouds of lime-dust. In many places where the work of destruction had been complete, the district presented the aspect rather of a quarry than of an inhabited town. The work of restoration was long delayed by the state of uncertainty prevailing amongst the mercantile classes, and by tiie ruin of so many owners of house property, who had long to wait for the promised indemnities. The flags of the fficulty than those IJut these objects ns, and to content >f which was soon r of the Christian estroyed, and ner r excited the regret tally darkened by ed in the ruin of shapeless heap of lonument of death wn as " Pompey's i in honour of the formed part of the ve the pedestal of aerial chamber for y of ancient ruins )wn as " Cleopatra's and re-erected in time subsequent to again transported, inkment on the left le generations half ambitious to have yptian Government le Central Park of elongated " Consul's )ensation for all the en again threatened year 1882. On this ind after the attack y incendiaries and ears after the catas- lented a lamentable as of ruined houses, sed dense clouds of 1 been complete, the babited town. The sertainty prevailing y owners of house I. The flags of the %::''-:. If /-' .1. ' :./' V ALEXANDRIA. 488 f ;V. footpaths and the paTing-stones used in the streets of the better-built quarters are imported from Europe. The Egyptian Institute, the principal scientific establishment in the Nile Valley, has been founded, not in Cairo, but in Alexandria, as if the intention has been to Fii;. 135 — Albxanduia and Lake Mamivt. Soale 1 : :j| H I Wl hi ptW p j|tMl- |l . NAUCRATIS. 486 idia, Greece, and 8 a centre of the ommerce. More «rorld are effected 3d a monopoly of r of its greatest 10 cotton trade of barbour, wrongly uted here, is very the lost century >r in this harbour. Velcome " of the rtunately it is of 3, amongst which light craft are not ih forms a south- shipping of every inchor. There is al depth of from I and occasionally on between Alex- tion, the water of rt, and to irrigate ixhausted, leaving )f the place. The Is, reed and palm of suburban resi- and fortifications venues of palms, ds the north-east Lctium, has been During the last ome an extensive in every form and t order along the $ou8t-line where it commands at once the shore, Lake Mariut, and the port of Alexandria. From the limestone rocks of this coast have beer obtained the materials for the conHtruction of the great city, the piers, and breakwaters of its barbour. Beyond Meks nothing occurs except groups of huts, fishing hamlets, and t^«e remains of ancient cities. In this direction the wilderness begins whore the din from the busy seaport is no longer heard. West of the swamps and coast-line of Meks, the ancient city of Taponiris is still recalled by the modern village of Abmir. Beyond this point ranges of hills, detached sections of the plateau which stretches southwards in the direction of the Siwah oasis, follow at intervals along the sea-coast. Here the two headlands known to the ancients by the name of Katabathmus are less than 830 fo< 'ligh. The village of Mudar is the only collection of houses on this now almoHi unin- habited coast, which was formerly strewn with many towns, and which extends westwards as far as Cyrenaica. Mudar is the halting-place for caravans journeying between Alexardria and the 8iwah ousis. Nauckatis. On the Canopic branch of the Nile stood the ancient city of Naueratis, the first Greek settlement in Egypt, originally founded by a colony from Miletus, during the reign of Amasis. Being the only place in the country where the Greeks were pennitted to carry on a regular trade with the natives, Naueratis soon acquired great importance, and for a time became a chief centre of Hellenic culture in the delta. But after the foundation of Alexandria, its fame was eclipsed by the metropolis of the Ptolemies ; it lapsed into obscurity, and for many ages its very site was unknown. Recently, however, Mr. Petrie has discovered some ruins and archaeological remains at a spot which has been identified by Egyptologists as the site of the famous iiellenic emporium. A selection of pottery and other antiquities has already been forwarded to England by the Egypt Exploration Fund, and deposited in the Bronze Room of the British Museum. " The fragments of vases," writes Mr. Reginald Stuart Poole, " range through at least three hundred years, and from the geographical position of the settlement form a most valuable commentary on the vases of Rhodes, especially Eamiros, and on the early art of Ionia. " These specimens, fragmentary though they are, g^ve us most interesting examples of each class. On the oldest the design is painted on a pale yellow groimd. Similar fragments were found by Mr. Wood in the earliest stratum of remains under the temple of Diana at Ephesus. The specimons with figures and animals in crimson and other colours on a pale groimd are very similar to early vases of Kamiros and lalysos in Rhodes, of which there is a fine series in the FKst Vase Room. The subjects are very varied, animals and the lotus-pattern pre- dominating, with occasionally the human figure. These are followed by the successive archaic styles and the work of the best period. " Taken in connexion with the archaic fictile ware, a most interesting find is a large fragment of the sheL .called Tridachna squamosa, on which are incised patterns 480 NORTII-EAHT AFRICA. of an Asiatic origin. We know that tho HhoU is not found in tho MwliteiTancan, but belongs to tho fuunu of tho Hod 8cu and the Indian Ocean. HpceiincnH of it, similarly ornamented, have been found in Assyria, in P';le8tino, in lihodon, and nt Cunino in Etruria. Tho discovery of a fragment at Nuucratis adds one more link to tho chain, and we can hardly resist the conclusion that all these shells wore imported by the PhicnicianH by the trade-routes of the lied Sea, and afterwards fonned objects of borter in their traffic witu the Greeks and EtruHcuns at least as early us GOO i».. , • ^r.^ ti Agriculture. Egypt still derives its resources almost exclusively from its agriculture, as in the olden times when lean kine and fat kine were the respective symbolic repre- sentations of the misery or prosperity of the land. The alluvial soil, which has an average depth of about 32 feet, might be rendered extremely productive. But its exhausted strength requires to be restored by manure, and in many places it becomes saturated with saline and nitrous particles, unless regularly washed by copious inundations. On the whole the cultivation of the land is still in a rudimentary condition. The badly harvested wheat crop of the Nile Valley is always largely mixed with clay, and so saturated with salt that it is very difficult to keep. Almost as soon as " Academy," Mhjt 30, 1886, No. 682. I n0tt- HWOTMdl^^pv •n^aiy. AOniCTJTiTURB. 487 I MwlitoiTancan, SpecitiieiiH of it, II Ithodon, uiul at 1h ono more link hcHo hIioIIs wcrt! , and afterwards iticuna at least us ', and tt. a-cotta, 8 again Qrajco- llosB figure of a Weaving of gar- i this work to a 00 H.c, and, but school. On the ing Greek which of Naucratis, an Eaniirofl, but in les of diotae are 8 of this Greek } intercourse with 3ry early age with li the neighbour- ts we have from iicratis under the is partly to the at the results at y them for exca-v .7- ( i agriculture, as in symbolic repre- oil, which has an iuctive. But its . many places it ilarly washed by entary condition, rgely mixed with Almost as soon aa it is gnthcrod into the granaries it Womes a prey to weevil. The liiiNtHHl also contains foreign gruiiiH in the pro}M)rtion of one-fifth ; the indigo is purelu'd and earthy; the opium adulterated with lettuce-juice ; the cotton tibro mixed with uU kinds of impurities. The fields cultivated by the peasantry grow scarcely any largo plants except palms, while the products of the KuroiM>un fruit-trees are UHually of very indifferent quality. The tree valued beyond all others is still the date-palm, each plant of which yields an average yearly revenue of about sixteen shillings.* The domestic animals are budly carMl for, nor have the Egyptian stc . k-breco* might become gradually more brackish, as has, in fact, already haj >>' ^ d in the later ! branches of tho Ramadi and Ibrahimieh districts, where some forr Tly productive lands have had to be abandoned in consequence of the increased salinity of the irrigating streams. For the same reason the sugar plantations of Upper Egypt and the Fayum are no longer cultivated, it being found impossible to get rid of the salt with which they have become superabundantly charged. IndusTrigs. In the agricultural districts we frequently see the ancient methods of tillage handed down from the time of the Pharaohs still practised without modification side by side with the modem procepaes introduc. . t '. om Western Europe. In the same way, by the side of the industrial meiu-xis inherited from the ancient Egyptians and maintained in the spirit of routine resulting from long usage, the native industries also present processes -^ more recent date introduced by the Arab and Syrian conquerors of the la? J. Many factories on a large scale have also in still more recent times been established and conducted by European capitalists and engineers. The contrast is thus everywhere presented between an Egypt of the Pbciraohs, * Nili Canals in 18R0 8,000 miles. Sefl 2,000 „ Steam Pumps in 1880 600 Vv,r 8akleh8inl880 30,000 ' *■;• Sbadufs „ 70,000 r Hi it « 440 NORTH-EAST AFEICA. changeless in its forms, and a new Egypt brought within the influence of the restless and ever-progressive European world. The chief industry dating from the oldest times is that of pottery, the raw material for which is always supplied in abundance by the mud of the Nile and surrounding wadies. Along the banks of the main stream whole houses are met built entirely of earthenware, which here so often replaces the ordinary brickwork.* The so-called bardaks, or water-jars, produced in large quantities espficially at Keneh in Upper Egypt, are noteworthy both for the variety and elegance of their forms and for their serviceable character. Many are charged with a delicate and durable perfume, while all are made more or less permeable to water. They thus act partly as filters, partly as coolers, keeping the fluid fresh even in the hottest weather by the process of evaporation. The transport of these vessels to Cairo is effected in an ingenious and inexpensive way. Largo numbers joined loosely together with their mouths downwards form perfectly buoyant rafts of convenient shape, which by the aid of two or three boatmen are safely floated down the l^ile to the head of the delta. The industries introduced by the Arabs are the same as those that have been developed in all other Mussulman lands — saddlery, carpet-weaving, leather- work, copper-work, dampscening, gold and silver work. The iron and hardware trades are unimportant, and all utensils and implements of all sorts made of this metal are imported from Europe. Egypt has no iron mines, and in early times the only iron ores known to her were those of meteoric origin. The very expression " celestial substance," employed to designate iron, seems to show that the ancient Egyptians represented the firmament as a metallic vault, some fragments of which occasionally broke away and fell on the surface of the earth, t Trade — Railways and Telegraphs. '^^ v , v^^ >,?#e In the direction of the surrounding deserts, the valley of the Nile is still restricted in its commercial relations to the periodical despatch of caravans, which do not return for some months, and occasionally even for a whole year, from the interior of the continent. But the main stream itself i$i navigated by steam as well as sailing vessels, while the inhabited districts are traversed in all directions by the locomotive. By steam most of the pilgrims now make the journey to the port of Mecca and back, j: • In proportion to its superficial extent, but not to the density of its population, the Nile delta is one of those regions in which the railway system has been most fully developed. Besides this means of communication, over 600 miles of canals, exclusive of the two great branches of the Nile, are open to navigation throughout the year, and during the inundations the navigable arteries are at least three times longer. «'■.■-• : - ".'■'> :-'Vv v,-% •;■<''' ■-' • 6. Ilohlfs, " Drei Monate in der Libyscheii Wiiste." . . ■<- t Fr. Lenormant, " Premieres Civilisations." - ' - ^-^ X Egyptian steamers on the Nile, 40 ; Egyptian steamers on the lied Sea and Mediterranean, 16 ; total of the cummercial fleet, 1,500 vessels ; boats and other rivef craft, 10,300. k TEADE— RAILWAYS AND TELEGRAPHS. 441 he influence of the stry dating from the always supplied in Along the banks of iware, which here so mtities especially at nd elegance of their i with a delicate and water. They thus 1 even in the hottest se vessels to Cairo is abers joined loosely ; rafts of convenient loated down the Nile those that have been javing, leather-work, and hardware trades s made of this metal I in early times the The very expression how that the ancient i fragments of which r of the Nile is stiU ih of caravans, which whole year, from the lavigated by steam as ersed in all directions ke the journey to the sity of its population, system has been most r 600 miles of canals, navigation throughout ies are at least three 3ea and Mediterranean, 16 ; 00. From the head of the delta the network of railways is continued along the right bank of the Nile southwards to Siut. For the purpose of forwarding troops, and other military purposes, the late Khedive had also caused other lines to be constructed still farther south, which at one time the English intended to carry as far as Dongola. All the sugar plantations, both in Upper Egypt and in the delta, have also their special system of narrow-gauge lines coimected with the general network. Amongst the projected lines there are several which, when carried out, will place the whole of the Nile Valley in direct railway commimica- tion with the ports of the Red Sea. The telegraph has preceded the locomotive in every direction, and a few years Fig. 136. — Egyptian Railways. Scale 1 : 6,000.000. Railwajra. Abandoned lines. .60 Miles. Telegmpb line l>eyond the railway sntem. ago had already been extended across the desert southwards to the equatorial regions. But the small number of private messages, as well as the low proportion of postal correspondence, less than one letter per head of the population, shows that, apart from the Government officials, little use is made of these means of correspondence except by Europeans and other strangers domiciled in Egypt. Speaking generally, the trade of Egypt is relatively more developed than that of several European countries. Calculated by the number of inhabitants, it amotmts to nearly half the commerce of France, while even exceeding it in the relative movement of the shipping in the ports of the Mediterranean and Red Sea. Even before taking possession of the country, England held the first position in this respect, about forty-five per cent, of the gross toimage of all vessels frequenting 44S NOBTH-EAST AFEICA. the Egyptian ports fljring the British flag. The next in importance are Austria and France, both ranking before Egypt herself, whose flag covers little more than nine per cent, of local traffic. Public Instruction. Of late years education has received a considerable impulse, although most of the Mussulman schools are still mere kutidbs attached to the mosques, and in which instruction is limited to reading and writing and the recitation of passages from the Koran. Besides the primary establishments there are several high schools, in which, as in the University of El-Azhar, courses of mathematics and jurispru- dence are added to the general curriculum. Since the time of Mohammed Ali elementary schools on the European model were founded in some of the large towns, but most of these establishments have been closed and replaced by institutions opened or supported by the various European colonies and religious communities. The Egyptian Government has also endeavoured to keep pace with the European States by founding higher and special schools for secondary instruction. Moreover, there are at Cairo a medical college, a polytechnic establishment, and other schools specially devoted to the teaching of law, the mechanical arts, languages, mensuration, and similar branches of practical knowledge. ^N^evertheless, most young men anxious to prosecute their studies in the higher departments of science, generally prefer to finish their course in the European colleges. / Of modem European languages French is the most widely diffused in Egjrpt ; but, under the new administration, the budget of public instruction has undergone retrenchment, especially at the cost of the French teachers and professors. This step would seem to have been adopted for the purpose of sooner or later excluding the French language altogether from the civil and military educational establish- ments of the country. ,; ^; Government. V The government of Egypt still practically remains what it has ever been — almost a pure despotism. According to the accej-ed political tradition, the only right enjoyed by the mass of t' <> people is that of paying the imposts and obeying the la vf ; but, by a singular complication, caused by the action of a thousand foreign intrigues and rivalries, the Egyptians themselves scarcely know whom to regard as their true masters. Hence they have nothing to do except resign themselves to a situation from which there is no escape, repeating the while the old Arab saying, " The people are like the grain of sesame, which is ground so long as it yields oil."* Officially, the ruler of Egypt is a prince of the family of Mohammed Ali, bearing the title of Khedive, which implies a rank somewhat intermediate between * Heinricb isteplian, "Dos heutige ^gypten." FINANCE— ARMY AND NATY. 448 ince are Austria little more than although most mosques, and in ation of passages oral high schools, ics and jurispru- European model ablishments have by the various pemment has also ligher and special a medical college, to the teaching of inches of practical their studies in their course in the liffused in Egypt ; ion has undergone professors. This or later excluding icational establish- t has ever been — tradition, the only uposts and obeying : a thousand foreign whom to regard as gn themselves to a be old Arab saying, o long as it yields of Mohammed Ali, itermediate between those of viceroy and sovereign. The legal sovereign is still the Sultan of Constan- tinople, in whose name the imposts are levied, and whose monogram is stumped on the native currency. The padishaw continues to receive a yearly tribute of £700,000, just as if th'i present intervention of Great Britain had not effaced the last vestige of his tutho ity. He also derives an income of from £280,000 to £320,000 from the monopoly secured to the import trade of Turkish tobacro. Nevertheless, at least three-fourths of the tobacco consumed in the country is introduced by an organised system of smuggling, especially across the frontier of the desert towards Palestine. Till recently the official language was Turkish, not Arabic, which is neverthe- less the mother tongue of nearly all the native inhabitants of Egypt. But the political power has passed from the hands of the Sultun, and is now practically exercised by the Christian states of Europe. A few years ago the Condominium was jointly exercised by England and France. Their agents controlled the finances, which they disposed of at their pleasure, thereby substituting their own authority for that of the Khedive. The European nations were also more powerful in Egypt than the local Government, in virtue of the consular tribunals, which, in the terms of the " Capitulations," claimed exclusive jurisdiction in all matters of dispute in which both Europeans und natives were concerned. But the Condominium has lapsed, and. Great Britain alone exercises the control ever since the military revolt under \rabi Pasha — a revolt which, although made to the war-cry of " Egypt for the Egyptians," would, if successful, have resulted in handing over the country to new Mameluks of native origin no less oppressive and extortionate than the former Mameluks of foreign race — Arabs, Circassians, Armenians, Sudanese, and others. t.' •'> • * ' ^ > ' • - . ' The ministers appointed by England decide the most important questions in accordance with her decrees, without even taking the trouble to consult the official sovereign. His function seems to be simply to attach his signature to all state documents. In return for this service he retains his nominal rank and personal revenues, but he no longer possesses even the privilege of putting an end by abdica- tion to his present somewhat ignoble position. Finance — Army and Navy. The political situation of Egypt is all the more strained and bewildering that the English, while exercising sovereign rights, omit no opportunity of asserting their set purpose to quit the land at no distant date, and restore to the Egyptians the autonomy they had so long forfeited to the stranger. At the same time their deeds themselves speak another language. British subjects, even Anglo-Hindus, Christians and Mussulmans alike, flock in hundreds to the Nile Valley, where they are installed in the places of emoliunent withdrawn from the native and non-British foreign officials. The public revenues formerly set apart to meet the claims of money-lenders at high interest are now applied in the first instance to pay the salaries of these new functionaries. They are also to some extent made available to 444 NORTH-EAST AFRICA. defray the costs of the British military occupation, aitiiough to meet these heavy charges it has also been found necessary to draw upon the revenues of the home country. The conveyance of the Queen's troops to Sudan, including provisions and supplies of all sorts, has been estimated to amount to at least £1,000 per head. In spite of the official budgets, which at the beginning of each financial year show a balance in favour of the treasury, the Government has for some time been hopelessly drifting to a state of absolute bankruptcy. In fact, payments would have been already suspended but for the loan of £8,000,000 sanctioned by the British Parliament and guaranteed by the European powers in the year 1886. The lowest rate of interest on the advance made by foreign bankers and capitalists since 1870 is 12 1 per cent. ; but numerous debts have been contracted at even double that heavy rate of interest.* Thus it has come to pass that within the short space of ten years the Egyptian people, who still supposed their masters to be the wealthiest in the world, found themselves saddled with a debt of nearly £120,000,000, or in the pro- portion of over £80 per family. .1 _ , The Egyptian army, composed of about 3,000 men, or scarcely more than one- fifth of its former strength, has been reduced to the position of a mere police force, and the question of its complete suppression has even been discussed. Meanwhile the conscription, without being officially abolished, has fallen into abeyance. All the military service is now being performed by the British troops, which towards the end of the year 1884 numbered over 13,500 men, and which in the spring of tl » next year had been raised to a total effective strength of nearly 25,000 for the whole of Egypt and the Sudan. Special constables have even been introduced from England, while the local constabulary is completely under the control of the British authorities. The fleet comprises officially about a dozen steamers, manned by perhaps 2,000 hands. . c ; ';■;■ s::«. Future Prospects. ' -^* Certainly the Egyptian people would not be justified' in placing too much reliance on the promises held out to it of political independence. Although, like most other modem nations, it has also its constitution drawn up in a charter of forty-nine articles, it elects no representatives, nor is it consulted in any way on political matters. The Assembly of Delegates, which was nnnually convoked under the government of Ismail in order to take into consideruuou the financial situation of the current year, has ceased to meat as a deliberative body. Nevertheless, there can be no doubt that the national sentiment is being gradually but steadily developed in Egypt, although the coimtry has forcibly become an integral part of the European world, and although the European powers are continually interfering more and more in its internal affairs. At the same time these very powers will have henceforth to reckon not only with the European element settled in the Nile • MacCoan, " Egypt 08 it is." ,,.,_,. ^ KBLTQIOUS ORGANISATION— ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS. 446 eet these heavy 168 of the home iding provisions ast £1,000 per h financial year some time been lents would have i by the British S85. The lowest alists since 1870 ouble that heavy pace of ten years vealthiest in the )0, or in the pro- more than one- nere police force, jsed. Meanwhile abeyance, ish troops, which and which in the L of nearly 25,000 in been introduced bhe control of the by perhaps 2,000 placing too much a. Although, like ip in a charter of ;ed in any way on ly convoked under financial situation Nevertheless, there ually but steadily an integral part of tinually interfering le very powers will settled in the Nile Valley, but also with the native population itself, which is being brought daily more under the influence of modern ideas. The time is probably approaching when the cry of " Egypt for the Egyptians," already raised under unhappy auspices, will again be heard in a way to command the respect and consideration of European statesmen. Religious Organisation. For the Egyptian Mahommedan world the chief dignitary of the Mussulman religion is still the Sheikh-el-Islam of Constantinople. Hence, in modifying the laws of the country without first obtaining the sanction of this spiritual head of the faithful, the British Government has shown a complete disregard and indifference to the most hallowed traditions of the land. In Egypt itself the chief religious authority is centred in the corporate body of doctors attached to the University of El-Azhar in Cairo. The " Jacobite " or National Church of the Coptic Christians is governed by the Patriarch of Alexandria, who, notwithstanding his official title, also resides permanently in Cairo. Like the patriarchs of the orthodox Greek Church, he is chosen not from the active clergy, but from amongst those leading a monastic life. The priests themselves never take orders imtil they are married, but the principle of celibacy is so far recognised that once become widowers they cannot contract a second marriage. For analogous reasons, marriage with the widows of priests, henceforth vowed to the Church, are also forbidden to all the faithful. The small section of the Coptic Christians who recognise the spiritual headship of the Roman pontiff have no national patriarch, but are governed by a bishop always conse- crated in Rome. Administrative Divisions. For administrative purposes Egypt is divided into mudirteh, or provinces, governed by a mudir, or prefect, who takes the title of mohqfez in those provinces which consist only of t^ large city and its suburban district. The mudirieh are in their turn divided into markaz or kiam, administered by officials bearing the title of nazir, and these again into districts of the third rank known by diverse names, corresponding to our circuits, cantons, parishes, and the like. The mudirs, or chief governors, administer their respective provinces in the com- bined capacity of civil prefects, receivers of the revenues, and military commanders. All the other provincial authorities are placed under the direct jurisdiction of these mudirs, who, however, discharge most of their multifarious functions by means of a vekil, or lieutenant, and with the aid of the notaries who form their divan or private coimcil. The kavm and the bodies of police placed at their disposal are charged with the maintenance of order amongst the fellahin or peasantry of the rural districts. This duty is usually attended by little difficulty, thanks to the naturally peaceful disposition of the inhabitants d Egypt, always ready to yield '."■■■. *.^ A r^ 44B NORTH-EAST AFBIOA. obedience to tho orders of the authorities. Nevertheless the recent years of civil war and foreign invasion have given rise to many local disturbances, fiands of marauders have made their appearance in the plains of the delta ; and for the first time for many generations the unwonted spectacle has been witnessed of villages attacked and plundered by brigands. Tho number of paid functionaries is estimated at no less than 21,000, amongst whom as many as 1,'280 were Europeans of all nations in the year 1882. But besides these there are numerous rural dignitaries, whose salaries are drawn directly from the products of the imposts. The large landed proprietors are the true masters of the villages standing on their estates. Thus it may happen that a single person may be at once the omdeh of a whole district ; that is to say, the official whn«e will is absolute in all matters connected with the levying of taxes, and with the corv^ or forced labour service required for the maintenance of the irrigation works. In the same way in the teftiah belonging to the domains of the Khedive and flie mem- bers of his family, for whom are now substituted the employes of the European bankers, the administration of affairs is in the hands of the representatives of the territorial lord. In other villages the functions of mayor are exercised by the sheikh-el-beled, or " district chiefs," each of whom has jurisdiction over a group of families. Some villages have but one, others several, and even as many as twenty of these rural headmen. In theory they are elected by the community ; but as a rule their authority is transmitted from father to eldest son, or else within the same family circle by seniority from father to brother, or from father to son or nephew. In certain remote districts, and especially in the Berari of the delta, the sheikh-el- beled are absolute masters — so many " petty kings," against whose decisions there is no appeal. . • ; * , iwnnyi'wwi-'ii f ^i"'" '■ ' ■ >; ! » > "^" ' " P' «i « ""r"i*, ' « " » ' ;»? " ' 8 'i F!i ! "- i juai. i ■ im ii i mu i jUJ i mj i ii y wywiwy ii i iyii i|i i ii ni «i«>ji»wwM mt years of civil lances. Bands of ; and for the first nessed of villages 1 21,000, amongst year 1882. But are drawn directly re the true masters lat a single person official who"e will id with the corvte gation works. In dive and the mem- B of the European resentatives of the 1 sheikh-el-heled, or of families. Some enty of these rural )ut as a rule their n the same family jn or nephew. In lelta, the sheikh-el- hose decisions there APPENDIX I. STATISTICAL TABLES. AFRICA. Area, according to Behtn and Wagner Estimated population (1882) Total forei^ trade, about . Approximate area of the Nile Basin . ,. „ Congo „ . 11,930,000 sq. miles. 206,82.5,000 £40,000,000 1,340,000 sq. miles. 1,280,000 EQUATORIAL LAKE iiEGION. Approximate area 172.000 sq. miles. Population (1885) 12,000,000 Area of Lake Victoria Nyanza 26,500 sq. miles. KINGDOM OF KARAGWE. Area .... Population . Chief Town, Wiirahanje. KINGDOM OP U-GANDA. Area . . . , . Area with dependencies . > Population . . . . Population, with dependencies -Chief Town, Rubaga. ZERIBA REGION.* 6,000 faq. miles. 350,000 (?) Estimated area Approximate population the left bank o{ the Upper Nile between L«ke Albert Nynnia and the Sobat confluence. 20,000 sq. miles. 70,000 >» I 2,775,000 5,000,000 ' 140,000 sq miles. 10,000,000 by the numerous streams flowing to ice. 448 APPENDIX I. SOBA'r AND YAL BASIiSS. Estimated area Population GO.nOU sq. milei. 3,000,000 (f) ABYSSINIA AND 8H0A. Area in iq. mile*. rnpulatian. AbvMiiiia proper ('rigr*, AmhHra, Gojam, &c.) . . 80,000 2,000,000 gho'i 10,000 l./iOO.OOO Territory of thn Bokob, MengaH, Beni-Amer, &c. . . 28.000 100,000 Maiwawah and Shoho territory 10,000 60,000 Territory ot the Afars (Danakil), Obok, and Assab . 40,000 200,000 Territory of the iHsa and olhor dependent Somali tribes 6,000 60,000 HHirar and neifthbonring districts 8,000 1,200,000 Galla States of Southern Abyssinia 64,000 3,600,000 TitHl, Abyssinia and dependencies . . • 262,000 8,610,000 Adminibtbative Divihons of Abyisima. V OoremmeDts. Provinoei. Fluvial Basins. CUmatio Zones. Towns. j Dembea .... Blue Nile Dega, Voina-dega . . Gondar Chelga . . ,, Atbara . . . II >> • ' Chelga Yantungera . Atbara II II • • Dagossa . . Blue Nile II II • • Kuarra . . II II • • Beghemeder „ and Takkaznh •1 i» • • Sarama Ouna . . . ,» »i >i Dega Kainteh . . II Sainteh . . If II Ajihaha . . Dawont . . WaJla . . „ and Takkazeh II II * Talanta . . Woggara . Takkazeh, Atbara . . . Voina-dega, Dega . . Simen . . Dega ...... Inchatkab Tselemt . . If Voina-dega, Kwalla . Ermecho Atbura Kwalla . : •- 'I'sagadeh >> II KoUa Woga ra . »» ....... II Waldebl.a Tukkazeh II Wolkait . II Nngada QOJAM . . Aohefer . Blue Nile Voina-dega .... Isinala Macha . Dega, Voina-dega . . Uojam . Damnt . IJ Voina-dega, Kwalla . Monkorer Agaumeder >' , "„ ■ ,.■ Ashfa tt 1 Dahanah ») Dega, Voina-de., Kwalla Lasta . . j 8edeb . Jl 11 i> Wag . . »l ...... II II ... Sokata Wojerat . Enderta . II Jl -•..•• ,, Voina-Dega . . Makaleh S.ika . . II • . . • • II II • • Avergaleh ^u . . Red Sea Watershed . . Voina-dega, Kwalla . Zcbul, Ang( )t II II • • Kobbo Sloa' . . Takkazeh II II • • Samreh Tembien 1 ,1 i» II • • Abbi-Addi Tioufi . . . ' Adet . . Geralta . ; ; 1 II 11 • • II 11 • • Haussen \ Wambarta Haramat If 11 11 • • Degii, Voina-dega . . ChaUkut Adua . . Takkazeh, Mareb . . . 11 11 • • Adua Shireh . Vo'na-dega, Kwalla . .-- fc Agamoh . ,, »i • • • Dega, Voina-dega . . Addigrat culeh— Ki isa Mareb 11 11 • ' Saraweh . Voina-dega, Kwalla . Kodo-Fallass :' • ■ ■ \ k Hamiisen Mareb, Barka . . . . II 11 • • ' Vi i H i iiri i APPENDIX T 449 }. miUt. rnpnUtion. 2,000,000 1,/)00,000 100,000 fiO.OOO 200,000 60,000 1,200,000 3,500,000 8,610,000 Ua Towna. 11a a ilia Gondar Chelga Surama Inchatkab NHgada Isinala Monkorer Ashfa Bokata Maliuleh Kobbo Samreb Abbi-Addi Haussen Chalikat Adua Addigprat Eodo-Fallasai ABYSSINIAN TOWNS IN THE BASIN OP THE BLUE NILE. Oondar, population acoordinK to O. Rohlft 4,000 Fonjii Jenda Chelga ArnhH-Muriuni, population according to Lejean .... 4,000 Ifag and UariU, „ „ „ .... 4,000 Samara (Dobra-Titbor) ,, ,, .... .3,000 P Kortnita, population according to Stocker . . . . , 1,000 Dobra-Mariani Bahrdar Ismala Miihdora-Mariam, population according to Lejean .... 4,000 Yejibbeh fiaiao Debra-Wnrk population according to Lofobvre .... 3,000 Dima „ „ Combea .... 2,600 Mota Dambacha Gudara Mankuaa Buri Ashfa Magdala ABYSSINIAN TOWNS IN THE TAKKAZEH BASIN AND ON THE RED SEA. Inchatkab DobHrok Furas Saber, population according to Ferret Lalibala „ „ Rohlfs Sokota, population in 1881 Antaio Chalikut „ ,, Makaleh . . P imreh .... Uausaen, population according to Lefebvre Addigrat „ „ „ Senafeh Halai, population according to Ruasel Digsan „ ,, Lefebvre Abbi-Addi „ „ Rohlfi Adua Aksum „ ., „ Kodo-Felassi „ „ Atsega „ „ Heugiin Keren „ , „ „ Arkiko „ „ Bohlfs Massawah and suburba, in 1881 Af-Abad, population according; to Sapeto Dolka Zulla, in 1881 TOWNS OF EAST SHOA AND AD.IACENT LANDS Ankober, estimated population .. Aliu-Amba „ „ , Licheh „ ., , Angolala „ „ , Debra-Bei'ham „ ., . 2,000 l,2rD 1,500 1.000 2,000 1,200 •2,000 2,000 2,000 2,000 3,000 0,000 1,200 1,800 1,800 1,500 7,000 6,000 6,500 1,000 7,000 4,000 3,000 1,000 2,500 '\ B— AF. "1^ 460 APPENDIX 1. DANAKIL (AFAR) TERIUTORY. AuiiBii, oitimatod population Ruhelta 6,000 2,000 EUROPEAN POSSESSIONS. Iliirror in 1882, according to MuUer 20,000 ,„ . . 10,000 ;L"'"^'''* . . 6,000 Zoilah Trado of Ilarrar in 1870, £160,000. TOWNS OF WKSr SHOA AND NORTH OALLA STATES. Rogoh, population according to Chiarini '"'^ Suku „ .. K™pf "»"*"' Boiiga ...■••••'■' Fichoh Woroilltt DUdu'a Gorii rieno Ghobisso Miigar Chora States and Pmovincbb of Siioa ani> NKioiinoimiNo Landi. Btiitei. ShOA PftOPEB PrOvinceii. Afar Terbi- TORY . . . somaliland . Foreign Pos- BE88I0N» . . Efat . . . ■ Argobba . . . Godem . . . Efrata .... Mann .... Toarulet . . . Marabieteh . . Shna-meda . . Tulaina . . . Fatigar . . . Biilgiir . . . Dembi. . . . Etju .... Dnuri .... Wollo .... Bornna . . . Sodtlo .... Giirageh . . . Kabena . . • Tibet) . . . ■ Gudru .... JimmH-Lagamar* Noiino. . . . Liinmii Innarya . . . Shora .... Buiur .... Giima .... Goma .... Cera .... Jiiiima-Kuka . ■ Yangaro . . . Kaffa . . . . Ghimira . . . Modaito . . • Northern Tribes l88a . . ■ ■ Gadibursi. . . Assab FluTiol Baaiiu. Awash and Nile . AWHSll .... and Nile. Nile Awash . Nile *» Awash ., Walii, Gug8.t Gngsa . - . Nile, Gugsa . . . Gugsa, Nile !', Nile :Nile Giigsa Awash. Obok and Tajurah Zeila Harrar CliinaUo Zones. De^a, Voi'na-dega . Voina-dega, Kwalla Dega, Voina-dega Votaa-deg^ . . Voina-doga, Kwalla Dega, Voina-dega . Voina-dega, Kwalla Dega, Voina-dega Voina-dpga, Kwalla Dega, Voina-dega Voina-dega Voina-dega, Kwalla Plains and Deserts Webi Valleys and Plains Chief Tuwnt. Ankober Farroh Kok-fara liicheh Rogeh Woreillu Toleh Gorieno Mogar Lagamara Saka Folia Bonga Ausfia Assab Obnk Zeila Harrar APPENDIX I. 451 6,000 2,000 TIPPER NUHIA. Approximate aron 224,000 sq niiloi. Estimated populntioii 3,000,000 20,000 16,000 6.000 TE8. 10,000 12,000 NDI. Aegii . degu Kwiilla dega . K walla -dega K walla 'dpga Kwalla deserts Plains Chief Tuwni. Ankober Farreh Kok-fara liicheh Kogeli Woreillu Toleh Oorieno Mogar Lagamara Saka Folia Bonga Ansfia Asaab Obok Zeila Harrar Town* of Uppbr Nuuia. Bimbnihi ^adasi), population Famaka (Fazogl) ,, ... BosoroB, populalion according lu Boltram . Karkoj „ Bonilr ,, Wod-Modineh, population uciordiiig to Marno Messalamieh ,, „ Ijejean Abu-Ahraa „ „ ^lukhtar Doka, population according to Mukbtar Khartum, po|>ulation in 1882 Halfaya ,, according to tbo Knglish itafT Shendi ,, . ,, „ „ QoB-Rojob ,, ,, ,, Uokoby . Filik ,, ,, ,, ,, . . OaUbat (Motammeb), population according to Cuprulti 8uk Abu-Sin, population Kaiwala, population in 1882. . . Kd-I)nmfT, population according to the Engliith Ntaff Berber, population in 1882 Huakin and El-Kof, population in 1882 . Tokar, population Export trade of Suakin in 1870 1,000 2.000 8,000 2,000 8,000 2,000 18,000 7,000 6,600 70,000 3,600 2,600 1,600 1,000 B,000 3,000 10,000 2,000 10,000 11,000 4,000 £260,000 Bhipping in 1880, aoconling to Amici, 768 vessoli of 171,081 toni. HDOFAN. Approximate arou Estimated popu'ntion 100,000 sq. miles. 300,000 Chief Exports to EotFT kbpoue thk War. £80,000 66,000 2,600 Ostrich fvathem .... GumH .........••'• Hidot and ukins £143,500 Total trade of Kordofan, according to Prout, in 1870: Imports, £60,000 ; Exports, £132,600. Total, £182,600. Chikf Towns of KohuopAn. £l-Obeid, population before the war Abu-Hartiz Melbe'is Bara 30,000 Par-f6r. Approximate area . . ' ■ Population according to Nachtigal Mason . 200,000 sq. milea. 4,000,000 1,600,000 •^#\! •Mpi^wpMflM 462 APPENDIX T. Cni«» Towwi or l)*R-FdB. Kl-Fnihnr, poptilntion ucconlinR to F.imor KoJiL, poptilutiun acrording to Urowiio Omdhanfta Tom (Torra, Toran) .... F()ja(Fojoh) C,tti«,' Approximatfl aroa Entimated Population Kxtnnt of arable Ismli NUBIA. 100,000 iq inilet. 1,000,000 1,320 iq. miloi. CMWr Town* or Nubia. At)u-Ham«d. Korosko. Marawi. Nuri. KorU. Ambiikol. Adu-dfltn. Dabbeh. Abu-Gotai. Old Dongola. New Donnola, population according to Enaor, 7,000. Hemneh. Wady-UiUra. Dorp. EaYPT. Total area Area of the delta Area of arable lands Population in 1882 „ per total area : U to the gq. mile. „ per area of arable lands : 570 to the gq. mile. „ according to sex : men .... women .... 374,000 iq. milni. 13,000 11,700 0,806,400 3,216,247 3,262,869 Distribution of thb P..pulation accoemmo to thb Cbn»us of May Srd, 1882, ChristiHna. Sedentary Nomad Foreigners Mahommedans Copts Roman Catholics Greeks Protestants Armenians Jews 6,469,716 245,776 90,886 6,061,026 408,903 ^ 67,389 42,066 4,636 1,627 J 15,769 Ul4,521 FoltEIONBBS IN EOTPT (1878). « . '>9.963 Greeks ^' French *'"» T. 1. ... 14,024 "^''"* 3 795 ^"« '^'^ ; . . . 2 480 ^""'^'7. ... 1,003 Spaniards ' Germans Persians Hucsians ___ Total «8'0«* s?^^^~ ^ *»(■ «»' AI»l»ENI>IX I. 4R8 PopulHtinn <)l Kfrypt in IHOO 3,614, <00* Mnan riitn of mortiility 26 to 27 pr I.OOO Proportion miffKrinn from ophlhiilinia 17 per 1,000 000 iq milet. 000 ,320 iq. milM. lation according to )0 iq. milni. )0 )0 >0 Amia and Population or th« Rotptian Oakw in O"!*- Kxtent of nmble land KhaiKPh 4 gq. miles Dakhol 34 Farufrch i Buhariult 4 ^ Biwah 16 „' t'*'* P „ Farodgha . ? Total . . . 48 1182. ropiilaffnn. 0.1(1 16,203 44n (1,170 5,600 (P) 40 3,006 36,737 AuA ANu Population of thi Khedival Po«iRRiioN» bifuhk tiir Wak. Area In iiq. milek. Egypt 374,000 Oaaoi 4g Zcriba RoRion 140,000 Bubut and Yal BaiiinB .... 60 000 Upper Nubia (Sonar, 4c.) . . . 224,000 Lower Nubia 100,000 Kordol&n 100,000 Dar-F f'« >« i Ji |git i W tf^i >! ^>J. p^ ^ j" ^^ uaii, ._ 454 APPENDIX L Capital Account op thb Suez Canai, Compant (1882). 397.438 Bhures of £20. . • • ••.•.•,: ^' ''*'>''' 301,848 obligations of £20, each isBued at £12, beanng interest at ^ ^^^^^^ 6 per cent, on par . ■ • • '^^' ' . ' I'arn'aan 83,993 delegations of £20 each, bearing interest at 6 per cent. . W,»<^0 ^ 99,990 thirty-three-year bonds of £5, at 8 per cent, interest . 499,950 16,152 bonds of £20 at 3 per cent. . • ' ; ' ' ' 399,76.i bonds of £3 88. each at 6 per cent., issued for the con- solidation of unpaid shares, redeemable at par • • • ^'If'Z: 100,000 foun.ler's shares, which on surplus profits yielded interest 126,697 Shipping ov 8ubz in 1880. „, . . 681 vessels of 682,110 tons. ^^"^ . 663 „ 677,626 „ Cleared Total • »'^** " 1'369,73B „ Shipping op Ismailia in 1882. 271 steamers of 696,000 tons Shipping of PoHT-SAiu in 1880 (bxclcsivb of thb Transit Tkauk). „, , . . 1,607 voBselB of 997,61 1 tons. ^"^^''f . 1,630 „ 997,395 „ Cleared I . Total 3,037 ,. 1,995.006 .. Shipping of Damietta in 1880. „ , , . 1,198 vessels of 83,215 tons. Entered ' 7q qor Cleared ' ' ' ^jUl. " .^.^ " Total. . . . . • • 2.374 „ 163.211 .. Shipping op Kosbtta in 1880. , *^ Entered . • • • ■• • • - 738 vessels of 2 J 124 tons. Cleared * i!! " ' " Total . . . . • • • l.-'e* •• 3^'^*^ " Shipping of Alexandria in 1880. '" ^ P ,„™,, . 3.305 vesselK of 1,292,296 toiiB. SeS ::;:... 3^0 „ 1^303^7 ,. > Total • «.fi65 „ 2,696,123 „ Total, 1881 . . *-' i ♦ 7,363 „ 2,677,414 ,, ... , . ;£6,000,000 Mean value of importa 13 000,000 „ exports ' : Total mean trade of Alexandria . .... • . £ , . t • • EoTPTiAN Commercial Navt. Steamers on the Nile „ Bed Sea and Mediterraiwan *° *' 1 600 * Sailing vessels of all classes • • , '„_. River craft ' . tolSM. :;v inan,. " f i)nmi» i.w .*i u mn m\i [t^w ^m * u^ni APPENDIX I. • 455 182). £7,948,760 6,036,960 1,679,860 499,950 303,040 Total Tradb of Eotpt in 1880. Imports £8,596,000 Exports 12,271,000 Total ,. . . . £20,867,000 1,335,201 126,697 (jf 682,110 tout). 677,626 „ 1,369,736 „ (SIT Tkauk). of 997,611 tons. 997,395 „ 1,995,006 Shii-pimo in 1880. Entered 8,119 vocsels of 3,102,772 tons. Cleared 8,040 „ 3,106,546 „ Total 16,169 „ 6,209,317 „ British Austrian French Egyptian Italian Sundries Shippino accokdinq to Nationalities. 2.656 vessels of 2,963,275 tons. 744 „ 766,220 „ 492 „ 699,288 „ 7,136 „ 690,442 „ 616 „ 422,966 „ 4,143 „ 412,777 „ Impobtb and Exports accohuino to Nationalities. - of 83,215 tons. 79,996 „ 163,211 „ ) of 20,124 tons. 19,717 „ 39,841 „ f 1,292,296 tons. 1,303,327 „ 2,696,123 „ 2,677,414 „ . ;C6,000,000 . 13,000,000 . £18,000,000 . • . 40 18 . 1,500 . 10,300 1 OoTernraent in 1876 for £8,976,682 )laced at the lUdpasal of Uie Company. 08 accruing on the 176,602 Bhare» up Great Britain Bussia . France « ■ Italy . . . Austria . » 'J'urkey Greece America India, China, Jupau Sundries Total . Importi from, 1888. £2,886,026 215,889 910,320 228,009 683,391 110,346 20,073 116,631 311,323 115,631 'rf £5,696,739 Ezporta to, 1882. £7,322,368 979,412 964,294 747,689 436,350 .. 383,633 77,027 p 30,966 166,633 £11,108,262 Chief Articles of Import and Export (1882). Import. Cotton goods . £1,340,037 Cotton . Coal ... . 769,272 Cotton seed . Clothing, &c. 221,600 Sugar . Indigo .... 210,428 Beans . Timber .... 182,645 Maize Wines and spirits . 175,616 (lumH Sugar .... 172,333 Hides . Machinery 168,818 Rico Woollen goods 114,865 Lentils . Petroleum 112,607 Ostricli feathei Rice .... 97,257 Wool . Oik ... . 68,606 Export £7,670,634 1,190,458 676,844 671,134 164,385 142,068 138,686 120,086 68,436 66,426 46,616 iW 'i^&il. , 466 APPENDIX I. Population of thk chief EovrxiAN Towns AccoRDiNa to thb census of 1882. ('airo 374,838 Gizeh 11,410 Alexandria . 213,010 Mit Ghumr . 11,225 Damictta 34,044 Ziftah . 11,140 Tantah . 33,750 Suez 10,919 Ansiut . 31,675 Mellawch 10,777 Mahallet-el-Kebir. 29,908 Abutig . 10.772 IMansurah 26,942 Beni-Siiof 10,085 Modinet-el-Fayum 25,799 Fuah . 9,903 Damanahur . 23,353 Esneh . 9.4?2 Zagazig . 19,815 Sohag . 8,774 Akhmin . 18,777 Kaliuli . 8,636 Eosetta . 16,666 Menzaleh 8,450 Port Said 16,560 Benha-l'Assal 8,364 Menuf 16,281 Dessuk . 7,677 Shibin-ol-Kom 16,250 Belbeis . 7,309 Minieh . 15,900 Ramleh . 4,342 Seneh . 15,402 Ehargeh 3,787 Sanhiires 15,392 Kasr-Dakhel . 3,539 Girgeh . 15,239 Ismailia 3.364 Tantah . 13,789 Abukir . 2,530 Manfalut 13,234 El-Arish 2,430 Samanud 11,557 Aqbicultuual Returns. Land under tillage . Steppe lands .... Desert, marsh, and waste . Sugar plantation!) in 1880 Sugar crop .... Date-trees in 1875 . Average date crop . Cotton plantations in 1883 Cotton crop in 1883 ., . Cotton seed „ . Raw cotton exported in !866 (the „ „ to Great Britain in 1882 Cereals exported to Great Britain in 1882 cotton famine year ' 11,000 eq. miles. 60,000 „ 313,000 „ 38,000 acres. 46,760 tons, value £935,000. 6,000,000 100,000 to 120,000 tons. 450,000 acres. £6,760,000 £1,164,000 rt:-,J, £16,000,000 ; . -> £5,034,786 £780,364 ■■ Trkioation Works. ; - ■ ■ '■ \ Nili Canals open in 1880 8,000 miles. Sefi 2,000 „ Steam Pumps 300 Sakiehs . 30,000 Shadufs 70,000 Railways ANn Tbleouaphs. Railways open iu 1884 Private agricultural lines Total. ^ . Railway passengers iu 1870 . . . * „ 1880 . . . , Goods traffic Telogrnpbg in Bgjrpt and the Egyptian possessions in 1878 900 milos. 250 „ 1,150 „ 2,172.668 3,093,840 5,260,000 tons. . 4,700 miles. APPENDIX I. 457 U8 OF 1882. Postal Sbkvicb (1883). 11,410 11,225 11,140 10,919 . 10,777 10,772 1U,086 . 9,903 9.422 8,774 8,636 8,450 8,354 7,677 7,309 4,342 3,787 3,539 3,364 2,530 2,430 10 tiq. miles. 10 >0 „ 10 acres. tons, value £935,000. OO 90 to 120,000 tons. L'O acres. »0 00 ' - ■ 30 . 'J 36 64 1,000 miles. !,000 „ 300 ,000 . ,000 Iietters posted to foreign coiintrieit Newspapers, books, packages, &c . Letters posted for the interior Books, &c., ,, „ Total .... Educational Returns. Attendance at all Mohammedan schools in 1820 •» II II »» n II 2,407,000 1,365,000 4,196,713 1,741,000 9,709,713 • Years. VITAL STATISTICS. Birthn. Deaths. Kzoess of Births. 1873 .... . 184,742 133,720 61,022 1874 .... . 177,732 144.924 32 808 1875 .... . 182,820 119,912 62,908 1876 .... . 186,679 132,008 64,671 1877 .... . 173,629 138,668 34,861 1820 3,000 1866 . 60,000 1873 . 90,000 1878 . 137,550 . 6,370 . 152 Mohammedan schools in 1878 . Foreign schools in 1880 . Attendance, 6,419 natives ; 5,828 foreigners. Newspapers (1879) French, 9 ; Arabia, 7 ; Italian, 5 ; Greek, 3; Sundries, 6. Total 29. FINANCE (1883). Revenue. Bevonue irom land and other direct contributions . . . £6,367,684 Indirect revenues, including customs, posts, octrois, and salt-tax 1,854,294 Railway and telegraphs ...,,,. . . . , . 389,104 ^ • Total . .£7,611,082 Expenditure. Tribute to Turkey . £678,397 Public debt . . '. . . 3,348,164 Co<hed — one black and long-headed (Shilluk, Dinka, Ni,c>i, Mittu), the other leociiir: or ruddy brown and short-headed (Bongo, Zandeh, &-\). 'Ihe complexion of tiie inttor may possibly be due to the properties of tho rod earth prevalent in their I 'triers | But no theory has been advanced to account for their brachycephaiy, which IS 8eQtrd by I masculine, and » feminine, is fully developed. Thus : ol = he, that r^ian ; il = tho."f> men ; en, eng r= she ; ing = those women ; el-e = this man ; en-a — th?8 woman ; witl. ■ ueh compare the Bari : lo = this man ; na = this woman ; the Boisg j ; bah =. he ; AoA == she ; and the Shilluk : nenno = he ; ndno =. she. Lepsius, however, is inclined to regard the so-called gender pai-ticles • " Orammntica e Vocabolario della lingua Denka," Rome, 1880, p. 231. t In Senaar alone the Araba reckon us many as six gradations between the pure Negro and the Semite : 1. El-Asraf, or yellow ; 2. El-Kat Fatalobin, the Abyssinian ; 3. El-Akdar, or red ; 4. El- Aaiaq, orblue; 6. El-Ahsdar, or "green"; 6. Ahbit, the Nubian. t Schweinfurth, " Heart of Africa." § Rev. T. Wakefield, in " Proceedings of the Geographical Society," for December, 1882. II Lepsius. " Eiiileitung," Xv: >f.-i: 'WJ^ '■ SiY vV V;,.: .^ -* 1" « J.iRPflWWf;""' :s/i5L *- r-;irfHir.%J.'.^iltei5K ■ i mOiritTf iii ' i APPENDIX II. 461 stem affluents of the about the Sobat con- he eastern portion of ) several independent ent, probably to tho the most important, lenaar, who by fusion ast century extended mber several millions, ame,* who has resided ilotic peoples present Ashanti's and other less black, the nose ihocephaly and prog- :o race less prominent lition due to diverse typas may be plainly r>i, Mittu), the other . The complexion of th prevalent in their brachycephaiy, which jristie neither of the atf. pom the lowest grade of the Zandeh. But the Negro races than Africa in the Barnard ns, London), as many Negroland, as it does al types. those of Baghirmi in jaro highlands and the bytheEev. T. Wake- ion are allied in speech ,ge of their neighbours, resence of grammatical ;ic Negroes, except the . gender being a feature )8 (Aryan, Semitic, and ound, affiliated to the I n feminine, is fully nff = she ; ing = those ire the Bari : lo=^ this I the Shilluk : nenno = -called gender particles Ben the pure Negro and tho . El-Akdar, or red ; 4. £1- of theOigob simply as "class prefixes" analogous to those of tho Bantu system. They certainly seem to indicate, besides sex, the qualities of strength, vigour, courage (masculine), or else anything soft, effeminate, weak or delicate (feminine). Thus the Masai call themselves il Oiffob =z " the men," using the masculine particle, whereas their Wa-K\vafi neighbours are stigmatised with the femiaine particle, as im- Barawkio, plural em-BarawUi, implying weakness or effeminacy. It is also noteworthy that, as with the Bantu prefixes, the masculine and feminine articles are re] ited in a more or less modified form, both before the noun and its adjective. Thus : ol-doeno oibor = the-mountain the-white (masculine) ; en-anga na-ibor = the-dress the-white (feminine). These forms are most instructive as probably supplying the crude begin- ning of the highly developed alliterative Bantu system on the one hand, and on the other those of true grammatical gender as fully elaborated in the higher orders of inflecting speech. Compart, for instance, with the foregoing examples, the Zulu-Kafir : in-Kosi en-Kulu = the-chief the-great ; and the Latin : domin-a me-a ■= lady-the my-the, where the parallelism between the respective initial and final " euphonic concords " is obvious. Here also wo see how the different morphological orders of speech merge imperceptibly one in the other, and how groundless is the new philological doctrine that these several orders are definitely fixed, and, like Ouvier's animal and vegetable species, incapable of further transformation. Although Islam has made considerable progress, especially amongst the Funj of Senaar, the Shilluks, Uinkas, and other Nilotic Negro tribes, the bulk of the people are still practically nature-worshipi)ers. Witchcraft continues to flourish amongst the Equatorial tribes, and important events are almost everywhere attended by sanguinary rites. When preparing for battle, the " medicine-man " flays an infant and places the bleeding victim on the war-path to be trampled by the warriors marching to victory. Cannibalism also, in some of its most repulsive forms, prevails amongst the Nyam-Nyam, who barter in human fat as a universal staple of trade ; and amongst the Monbuttu, who cure for future use the bodies of iiie slain in battle, and "drive their prisoners before them, as butchers drive sheep to the shambles, and these are only reserved to fall victims on a later day to thei • horrible and sickly greediness." * Yet many of these peoples are skilled agriculturists, and cultivate some of the useful industries, such as iron smelting and easting, weaving and pottery, with great success. The form and ornamental designs of their utensils display real artistic taste, while the temper of their iron-implements is often superior to that of the imported European hardware. Here again the observation has been made, that the tribes most addicted to cannibalism also excel in mental qualities and physical energy. Nor are they strangers to the finer feelings of human nature, and above all the surrounding peoples the Zandeh anthro- T-ophagists are distinguished by their regard and devotion for the weaker sex. Kavirondo Xuri Kara Xanda Shefalu Modi Shuli Lahore Gnmhil Kirim Mala Uking f ■< L KHst side Victoria Nyanza, dominant froir the Wa Soga territory to the Kercw6 Island, south-east corner of the lake. Speech appears to he Negro Hnd akin to Shilluk. " The Wa- Kavirondo are hy no means attractive in their appear- ance,, nnd contrast unfavourably with the Masai. Their heads aro of a dis- tinctly lower type, eyes dull and muddy, jaws somewhat prognathous, mouth unplcHsantly large, anl lips thick, projcciing and evertel ; they are, in fact, true Negroes." — Joseph Thomson, " Through Masai Land " p. 474. Nanda uplands, north of Kavirondo, fierce wild tribes of uncertain a£Bnities. North IT-Nyoro, akin to the Bhilluks. Between the Lower Somer.-et Nile and the Madi Mountains, and limited westwards by the Buhi'-el-Jebel; ■ - ' , Middle and Upper Sobat basin. December, 1882. o SchweiTifurth, op. eit., ii p. 93. Vff.' 402 APPENDIX II. Janghey Jibba liin\jak lialok Fallanj N'mak Kama Sttro Amam llari Monbiitlu Zandeh Mittu {Mattu) Bongo {Dor) Shir Hoi. Agar Soji Lehti Nuer Dinka Shilluk Duniir Ayarr Mok Tandy B6t Ayell Takruri Futy Krej Fertit )> Lower Sobat Basin. Both M(los Btthr-el-Jebul, 4'— .5° N., limited noithword by the Shir territory. About headwaters of the river WeJle, beyond the Egyptian frontier. From south-west frontier Egyptian SudUn for unknown distance westwards ; iiro the Niam-Niam of the Nilotic tribes. M r K ) ^""^ district north of Monbuttuland. The Mittu call their country ' at!k I, i!^" I More, which is not an ethnical but a geographical name (Schwein I Abbakah I ^^^y^ .. Q^^ ^f Africa," i. p. 403). Luba ' Upper Course Tondy anil J ur rivers, thence to Zrtndeh frontier. Buhr-ol-Jebol 6°— 6^ N., between the Dinka and Bari territories. i Tribes of uncertain affinity along Rol river, oast of the Bongo and Mittu. 1 K^"' } ^^°°* ^°^®' *'°'*^ Bahr-el-Jebel, T-Q" S. Abuyo, Agar, Ajak, , Aliab, Arol, Atwot, | Along Bahr-el-Jebel, and right bank White Nile, 6'— 12° Awan, Bor, Donjol, | N. .lur, Gok, Riah ' Largest of all the Nilotic Negro tribes (Beltrame). Kwa,ti, Dyakin, i j^^^j, ^^^^ Bahr-el-Jebel an^. White Nile, 9°— 12° N. Dyok, Roah ; ^ Unclasscd tribes south of the D^nkas north-east of the Bongos, 7°— 8° N., ' between Molmul and Biial riverti ; probably akin to the Bongos. Gallibat district, Abyssinian frontier, originally from Dar-Fur (James's '• Wild Tribes of the Suddn," p. 30). The dominant race in Senaar, supposed to be of Shilluk stock, but now largely mixed with the Arabs of that region. [ About headwaters of the Bahr-el-Arab, beyond Egyptian frontier. -■.\N III. NUBA GROUP. The Nobatse of Diocletian are commonly assumed to be the modem Nubians. But, although not yet recognised in British official reports, the Nubian race and name have even a more venerable antiquity than this statement would imply. In a passage quoted in note 22 we find mention already made by Strabo of the Nov^Sai ; and in another passage the same writer, who flourished three hundred years before the time of Diocletian, describes these Nubse as " a great nation " dwelling in Libya, that is, Africa, along the loft bank of the Nile from Meroe to the bends of the river.* The word itself has even been identified by some writers with the land of iVwi or JVoJ, that is, " Gold," the region about Moimt Elbeh on the Bed Sea coast over against Jiddah, where the Egyptians worked the precious metal from the remotest times. But this identification must be rejected since the discovery that the cradle of the • 'E€ (ipWTtpuiv Si p'ianitt roii NtiXow Nui'i^ai icnrnicntiiTd/ tt> ry Ai/3uy, fiiya tfli'Of, &c. (Book 17, p. 1117, Oxford ed., 1807 ) jjjii^ii' ,^ the Shir territory. Ill frontier, distance weotwards ; are Mittu call their country jraphical name (Schwein Dntior. i- ritories. i )ongo and Mittu, ank White Nile, 6'— 12° egro tribes (Beltrame). ile, 9"— 12* N. the Bonu!08, 7° —8' N., the Bongos. Dar-Fur (James's 'Wild ik stock, but now largely ' ' '. .1/- - .V^^^v^.- n frontier. , odem Nubians. But, bian race and name imply. In a passage ^oSjSai ; and in another ■8 before the time of Libya, that is, Africa, ver.* The word itself Mh, that is, " Gold," ist Jiddah, where the ;hat the cradle of the liya lOios, &0. (Book 17, i» ji i i ! » > iai >' W.." APPENDIX II. 468 Nuba race is not to the oast but to the west of the Nile,* in the Kordofan highlands. The linai syliablo /dA» of the very word Kordo-fan is explained to moan in tho Nuba language land, country, thus answering to tho Arabic dar, as in iJar-Fur = tlie land of the I)tr people. Both the Fur and the Kordo, if those latter are identical with the Kargn of the Jebel-Kargo, are themselves of Nuba stock and spooch ; and tho term Nuba is still current in Kordofan both in an ethnical and a geographical sense, indicating the Jebel-Nuba uplands inhabited by the Nuba tribe. Ilore, thurofore, is tho true home of the race, some of whom appear to have migrated northwards soniu two thousand years ago, settling partly in the Kargey oatsis (Diocletian's Nobato)), partly in the narrow valley of the Nile about Meroe (Strabo's Nubce). Since those days there have always been Nuboo, Nobatte, or Nubians in tho Nile Valley, mainly in the region of the Cataracts ; and we read that after their removal hither from Kai'gey, the Nobateo dwelt for some time peacefully with the Blommyes (Hamitic Bejas). They even made common cause with them against the Bomans; but the confederacy was crushed by Maximinus in 451. Then the Bejas withdrew to their old homes in the Arabian desert, while the Nobato), embracing Christianity in 545, developed a powerful Christian state in the Nile Valley. Silco, founder of this kingdom of Dongola, as it was called from its capital, bore the title of " King of the Noubads and of all the Ethiopians," that is, of the present Nubian andBeja nations. His empire lasted for 700 years, and was finally overthrown by the Arabs in the thirteenth century, since which time the Nile Nubians have been Mohammedans. They also gradually withdrew to th '"• present limits between Egypt and Old Dongola, the rest of their territory thence to Khartum being occupied by the Sheygyeh, Bobabat, Jalin, and other powerful Arab tribes. There are thus two main divisions of the Nuba race : the Nubas proper of Kordofan, found also dispersedly in Dar-Fur ; and the Nile Nubas, commonly called Nubians in European books of travel, but who now call themselves Barabra.f By the latter the term Nuba has been rejected, and is even regarded as an insult when applied to them by others. The old national name appears to have fallen into discredit in the Nile Valley, where it has become synonymous with " slave," owing to the vast number of slaves supplied for ages by the Nuba populations of Kordofan and Dar-Fur.^ The Nile Nubas themselves supply no slaves to the market. Constituting settled and semi- civilised Mohammedan communities, they are treated on a footing of perfect equality in Egypt, where large numbers are engaged as free labourers, porters, '' costermongers," * This is also confirmed by Ptolemy, who (iv. 8) speaks of the Nubsa as ''maxime occidentales Avalitarum." t Plural of Berber!, that is, people of Berber, although at present they do not reach so far up the Nile as that town. But during the eighteenth century thi« place acquired considerable influence as capital of a large Nubian state tributary to thr Funj kingn of Senaar. It is still an important station on the Nile just below tho Atbara confluence, at the point where the river approuches nearest to the Red Sea coast at Suakin. It may here be mentioned that tho term Barabra is referred by some authorities, not to the town of Berber, but to \h%Barabara people, whose nume occurs amongiit the 113 tribes recorded in the inscription on a gateway of Thutmes, by whom they were reduced about 1700 B.C. This identi- fication seems to some extent confirmed by the generic name Kent applied in the same inscription to many of these " Ethiopian tribes," and still surviving in the form of Kenus (plunil of Kensi), the name of the northern division of the Nubian (Barabra) people towards the Egyptian fiontier. It is further strengthened by a later inscription of Ramses II. in Kam>ik (1400 B.C.), where mention again occurs of the Beraberata, one of the southern races conquered by )iim. Hence Brugsch (" Reisebericht aus ^gypten," pp. 127 and 165) is inclined to regard the modern "Barabra" as a true ethnical name confused in classic times with the Greek and Roman Barbaras, but which has resumed its historic value since the Moslem conquest. X Thus in Sakakini's fibular returns of the average prices of slaves sold in Egypt from 1870 to 1880, all, of whatever j»rop«miMM, are grouped under two heads— " Nubians " and " Abyssinians," none being true Nubians or Abyssinians, but either Nubas and other Negroes from Kordofan and the Upper Nile, or else Barea, Bas^, Shan-Gallas, and other Negroid peoples from the Abyssinian uplands. According to these returns ihe latter command the highest prices in the slave mfrket, £°20 to £50 for adults, the Nnbaa fetching only from £18 to £40. - ^. „ ^ - ; ■ 464 APPENDIX TI. ivK, *:«., and in varioun other purBiiits. They are a Htronpf, miiHcular peoplo, uhaentially agricul- tural, more warlike and cntTgetio than the HujyptiaiiH, wlioin they uIho exc^el in moral qualities. Tlioir Mohammedanism is not of a fanatical typo ; and although the preHeut Mahdi is a Nubian of Dongohi, he has found his chief nupport not amongflt Iuh country- men, but amongst the more recently converted Negroes, and especially the Arab and llamite communities of Kordofan and other parts of Eastern Huddu. There is a marked difference between the jthysical appearance of the two great branches of the Nuba race. The Nubian (Barabra) type is obviously Negroid, very dark, often abnost black, with tumid lips, largo black dreamy eyes, doii jhocephalio head (73-72 as compared with the normal Negro 73-40, and the old F^^ptian 75-68), woolly or strongly frizzled hair. The scant beard is still worn under the chin, like the figures t.f the Negro t'ugitives in the battle-pieces sculptured on the walls of the Egyptian temples. But, as amongst all mixed peoples, there are considerable devia- tions from the normal Nubian standard, some showing affinities to the old Egyptian, as already remarked by Blumenbach, some noted for their fine oval face and regular features, others for their long or slightly crisp hair, and bronze,* reddish brown, or deep mahogany complexions. In general it may be said with Burkhardt that the nose is loMs flat, the lips less thick, the cheekbones less prominent, the colour less dark ("of a coppery tinge "), than amongst the true Negroes. The Nile Nubians must therefore be regarded as essentially a mixed race, presenting every shade of transition between the original Nuba type and the various Hamitio and Semitic elements with which they have intermingled in the Nile Valley. The original Nuba type itself must be studied in the Kordofan highlands, where it persists in its greatest purity. The Kordofan Nuba? are unanimously described by Russeger, Petherick, Lepsius, and other intelligent obnervers as emphatically a Negro race. " Negerstamme," "Negerfolk," "Negroes," "Niggers," are the unqualified terms applied to them in all books of travel, so that there can be no doubt at all on this point.f Its importance is obvious, for it settles the question of the true affinities of the Nile Nubians, about which so mx('mI in mural althouffh the preHeat amongst hitt ooiintry- ocittlly tho Arab and ,u. nee of the two great riously Negroid, very eyeB, doa'^hocephulio old Fj.;_>ival face and regular e,* reddish brown, or irkhardt that the nose ( colour less dark ("of ubians must therefore of transition between uents with which they an highlands, where it imously described by emphatically a Negro " are the unqualified no doubt at all on this he true affinities of the ns, not to the Kordofan 386 Uaua are the oldest le occurs on a tomb at They are again men- id by Usertesen II., of jr, and in many subse- he Negro races beyond lal or stereotyped name after which it suddenly ably due to the already la were reduced, if not between them and the Valley may be regarded ' a consideration of the Lnguage quoted farther les of the Nuba race is isily explained by tue ire is the same, and the den Nubiem herrgoht eine lite Negertypua bricht nioht buiifig." 3k lips, xhort flat nose, com- AITKNDIX n. 465 subjoined list of a f<'W ronimon words in tho Dongolawi of tho Nih> uud in four Kordo- fun (lialucts shows that thu vocabulary also is osHoiitially one : — KngUah Mouth . . UongoUwl (ifu.). iixil Jtbel Knrgo Jebcl Kolajl. ■Ill] J«bj 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716)872-4503 .M^^^MHu^- '>;^ ^^4^ •' CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHM/ICMH Collection de microfiches. Canadian InttituM lor Hiatorical MIcroraproductiona / Inatltut Canadian da microraproduetlona hiatoriquaa 'V.^ ^■ •^ ^tjum ■ii)t>rc»WiiaiiiiWniiw ASM iiijy 'I I i Vi i Nii g p i i Tb^ i i iiii,nt] i ii i fiiaii>t« i i;i iMwjwp i APPENDIX II. 467 Hotumlu ■ Karneahim Az-Shuma Dokono . llaiab Bejuk Afensa Hogo> {Bilin)* Takue Marea Algeden , Sabderat . Dembela . Harrar . Tigre Amhara , Mudun (Samhar) coast district about Massawa and as fur as Aqiq. > Anseba province, north-east frontier of Abyssinia inland from Mudun. I Beit-Bidel and Dombela districts, about the headstrcams of the Barka (Baraka) I and Marob (Gash) rivers, west of Anseba. Abyssinian enclave in Somaliland, east from Shea ; 9° 40' N. ; 42' E, The predominant nation in North Abyssinia. The |iredominant nation in South Abyssinia, now politically subject to the Tigrd. Shtygyeh {Shaikieh). Uobabat . HasMitieh Homran . Abu-Rof . Shukrieh . Dobeina , Yimanieh Jalin (Jakaliu KababishX Baqqdra (4) IsMAELinc OB Arab Branch. From Dongola along left bank Nile to Abn-Hanimed. Noted for their extremely dark complexion, yet claiming to be of unmixed Arab descent. . From Abu-Hammed to the Atbara confluence. About the Atbara confluence, between the Robabat and Jalin north and xouth. . Middle course of the Atbara and Mareb rivers as far as the Bas6 (Eunamu) territory. . Widespread throughout West Senaar. . I Lower and Middle Atbara (left bank), and southwards to Henaar. T . Mainly about the Blue Nile confluence, Khartum district ; but widely difi'used as traders and settlers throughout Senaar, Taka, Eordofan, Dar-Fur, and even KaflF^.t . Widely i-pread west of the Nile between 12° — 16° N., but especially along the route from Obeid (Kordofan) to the Nile at Dongola. The name means " Goat- herds," although they are also large breeders of horses and camels. . Mainly south of the Kababish along west bank of the Nile and Bahr-el-Arab nearly to its source. The term Baqqara, unknown in the Arab national gene- alogies, has given rise to some misunderstanding. It is not the name ot iiny )iarticular tribe, but an expression applied collectively to all tribes which breed and deal in cattle, in contradistinction to thoae whose wealth consists in horses and camels. Hence there areBaqq&ra in many parts of Sud&n, although and bedienen sich des reinsten athiopischen Idioms, des Tigr6 " (Munziger, op. eit. p. 73). This use of the term "Ethiopian" is very confusing, as it is also, and more properly, employed as the collective name of the eastern division of the Hamitic family. The Himyarites (Abyssinians) are intruders from Arabia ; the Hamites are the true autochthones, hence best entitled to the title of " Ethiopian," which by the ancients was applied, although somewhat vaguely, to all the native populations stretching south from the frontier of Egypt proper. • The Bogos are classed by Beinisch {he. eit. p. 94) with the Hamites, or " Kushit-s," as he caUs them. But he elsewhere rightly affiliates them to the Abyssinian Semites, as speaking a pure Tigr6 (Geez) dialect, herein agreeing with Munziger in his " Ostafrikanische Studien," who is our best autho- rity on these fragmentary ethnical groups on the north and north-east frontiers of Abyssinia. t The Jalin claim special consideration as the most numerous, intelligent, and purest of all the Sudanese Arabs. They trace their descent from Abbas, uncle of the Prophet ; but their Arabic speech, preserved and spoken with great purity, indicates the Hejas as their original home. The chief Jalin tribes, as enumerated by Munziger, are: Muhammadab, Mikringa Bagelab, Tftdieh, Gebftlab, Ealiab, Gum- mieh, Gummeab, Oereshab Nifeab, Sadob, Jaudallahab, Mekaberab, Meirefab, MoselUmab, Omarab, Timerab, Kitejab, Giaberab, Aliab, Ginberab, Seidab, Shatinab, Megpiadab. The final ab of these tribal names is not an Arabic but a Beja patronymic ending, borrowed from the neighbouring Hadendoahs of the Mareb Valley, with whom they have long been intimately associated. Some of the Jalin tribes of the Barka district have even adopted the To-Bedawieh language, and pass for Hamites. t " Es ist nicht unmoglich dass die beiden Volker [Eababish and Baqq&ra] von einem Stamme entsprossen, sich die Weide vertheilt haben, wodurch die Trennung stereotyp wurde. Die Kuhhirten hielten sich an den g.-asigen Siiden, die Kababish an den trockenen abor von Mimosen stark bewaldeten Norden, derallein dem Kameel und der Zioge Convenirt." (Munziger, op, eit. p. 561.) msmmmmmm SMlfWlC' iWWW**^ " '■ y w^ ^ ■ i , !f f ■ . ■ ,'-g^ 7^ - ffff ,ffl?. '|»;* wii ' M*y I m m / ^ww rn^m ' 468 APPENDIX II. Allawin . Ainriin . Hiiweitdt Maazeh . Aulad'AU Hawarah , they nro chiefly concentrsted about the loft bank of the White Nile, and further west towards the headstreams of the Bahr-el-Arab (Baqq&ra-el- Uomr). ITie word is derived from baqnr = an ox. El-Arish district on the road between Eg-jpt and Palestine. • ■ 2 ' Itsthmus of Suez. ' ' Arabian desert between the Suez Oanal and the Nile. '' ■ ■' i.e. The " Goatherds," a power<''yi tribe rang^n.q; over the Arabiiin steppef from the Nile to the Ked Sea, between the paralleJs of Assiut and Beni-Suef. Have been identified by >iaspero with the anciert Libyan Mazu people, but have now been assimilated in speech and religion to the Arabs. The dominating tribe in the Libyan desert west of the Nile delta. West of Keneh, Upper Egrypt ; till recently supplied the Khedival Government with most of its irregular cavalry. Total population of all the Axab tribes in Egypt, about 2.i0,000. • ," • ., 1.,- ; . .. . V. HAMITIC GROUP. ■•^■1 i' TiBU Branch. £;;y-&-,vt,*) ^irtia^iisSal. The true affinities of the Tibus, long a subject of discussion among anthropologists, may now be determined in the light of the fresh materials recently brought to Europe by Dr. Nachtigal, and partly published in his monumental work, " Sahara und Suddn."* The Tibu domain comprises the whole of East Sahara from about 12° E. longitude to the Egyptian frontier, and from Fezzan southwards to Kanem, Wadai, and Dar-Fur. There are two main branches : 1 . The Teda, or Northern Tibus, possibly to be identified with the Tedamansii, a tribe of Garamantes plac 3d by Ptolemy in Tripolitana ; 2. The Daza, or Southern Tibus, through whom they gradually merge southwards iu the Kanembu, Kanuri, Zoghawa, Baele, and other Negro or Negroid peoples of Oentral and Eastern Sudan. The Tibu language follows precisely the same course, passing from the Northern and primitive Teda through the more highly developed Daza to the mixed Kanuri and other forms in the Tsad basin. But the physical and linguistic features revolve, so to say, in different planes, implying apparent antagonism between the ethnical and philological conditions. Both are found in their purest and most original state amongst the Northern Tedas, a point that has been clearly established by Nachtigal. But while the Teda physical type is not to be disting^shed from that of the neighbouring Imoshagh or Tuarik (Berber Hamites) of the Western Sahara, the Teda language shows no affinity either with the Hamitic or the Negro groups. It stands entirely apart, constituting the nucleus of a widespread linguistic family, with extensive ramifications in Dar-Fur, Wadai, Kanem, Bomu, Baghirmi, and generally throughout Central Sudan. In this region it appears to have been profoundly affected by Negro influences ; but no such influences can be detected in the Tibesti uplands, probably the cradle of the Tibu race and the centre of dispersion of the Tibu language. It follows that the Tibus must be regarded as a branch of the Hamitic stock, who, during their long isolation in Tibesti, have had time to develop an independent idiom no longer traceable to a common Tibu-Berber source. A notable feature of this idiom is the absence of grammatical gender, placing it even on a lower level than many Negro tongues of the Upper Nile and liilima-Njaro regions. It appears, however, to supply what may be called the " raw material," out of which gender has been elaborated in the Hamitic languages. T^us seems to be characteristic of masculine, d or t ot feminine terms, as in o-mri = man; d-di = woman. With this feminine dental may be compared the Berber t, which b both pre- and post-fixed, as in akli = negro ; taklit = negress. * Two volumes only have so far appeared (Berlin, 1879, 1881). The remainder, with rich philo- logical data, are anxionily awaittd by btudeiits of ^Mrican ethnology. Wpj^iP^"t!,!.'-^lf|:.J| • » i i V«i i >nM i y i ' > (> T i 'ii I »MtVnif Wf ii jjDim i il i iWff ii t II APPENDIX II. 469 lie White Nile, and l-Arab (Baqqfera-el- lian steppef from the id Beni-Suef. Have people, but have now - ■■•■,- ;"»b - lelta. Lhedival Government all the Arab tribes in ig anthropologists, mght to Europe by undSuddn."* The 1. longitude to the ndDar-Fur. There ) be identified with ana ; 2. The Daza, i in the Kanembu, lentral and Eastern passing from the Daza to the mixed in different planes, conditions. Both are Tedas, a point that bysical type is not to ■ik (Berber Hamites) with the Hamitic or BUS of a widespread lai, Kanem, Bomu, a it appears to have (noes can be detected B centre of dispersion Hamitic stock, who, n independent idiom ure of this idiom is the rel than many Negro •8, however, to supply been elaborated in the ne, dortoi feminine inine dental may be ili = negro ; taklit = emainder, with rich philo- BaeU Ennedi Zoghawa Fulah Masai proper ^.^v« r^if Kwajl Wa-atik North Dar- Fur, th»'nce north- westwards to Wanganya and Borku ; Rpeech akin to the Dasa or Southern 'libu ; type Negroid. Bbhbeh Bhamch. West Dar-Fur, where a few Fulah communities have penetrated in recent times from the Tsad basin. ..; 1 ,!•; ■ Masai Branch, .u'.-:.;' ■ ■;. i, A widespread and powerful nation, who occupy nearly the whole region east of Lake Victoria Nyaiiza, between the parallels of Mount Kilimanjaro and •. ;. Mount Chibcharaguani (3° 8. — 1° N.) Typo quite distinct from the surroundifig Bantu and Negro, and apparently allied to the Humitio Qallas. Language also appears to bo remotely connected with the Hamitic family. Twelve main divisions, of which tlie chief are Ngaj6, Molilian, Lyserti, and Leteyo. " These have the finest physical development and— but ibr a prominence of the cheek-bones, a tendency to a Mongolian shape and upward slant of the eyes, the choculate-coloured skin, and the hair with a tendency to become frizzy — they might (jass muster as very respectable and commonplace Europeans. The Ngajd-Masai are the purest breed, and are to be found chiefly around Kilimanjaro." (" Through Masai Land," p. 413.) A sub-branch of the Masai, who seem to have suffered degradRtion by mixture with the Neg^o population. Their original home was Mbaravui Laud, betwet-n Kilimanjaro and U-Sambam, west and east. Since 1830 have been scattered in aU directions by the Masai, with whom, however, they now live peaceably in many districts. Some have been evangelised. Large and poweiful nation, north of Masai Land, in the highlands some thirty miles beyond Lake Baringo, and in the northern parts of Lykipia, whence they have expelled the Masai. "They are strong-boned, ugly looking fellows, though their heads are not markedly Negroid." (■* Through Masai Land," p. 629.) Joseph Thomson tells us that their language is distinctly allied to the Masai, and this explorer considers that " they doubtless form a connecting link between the latter i-ace and the Nile tribes" {«*. p. 631). A hunting tribe scattered in very small communities over Masai Land, especially in the dense forests of Kenia, Kikuyu, the Mau range, Chibcharagnani, and other places where the elephant abounds. In appearance they resemble the lower class of Masai, to whose language their speech is also allied. By the Masai themselves " they are on the whole looked upon as a species of serf, and treated accordingly." (" Through Masai Land," p. 448.) South Etbiopian Bbanoh. Obomo ob Gali.a. The word Omri may serve in a way to connect the Tibu Hamites with the Galla, a chief branch of the Eastern Hamites, who also call themselves Oromo, Orma, Ormu = men. To these Eastern Hamites, who skirt the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea from the Equator to Egypt, and of whom the ancient Egyptians themselves were a branch, the vague terms Cushite and Ethiopian are frequently applied. By the intervening Abyssinian highlands they are divided into a southern and a porthem group, the chief branches of the former being the Afars (Dankali), the Somali, Galla, Kaffa,* and outlying Wa-Huma ; of the latter, the Saho, Bogos, or Bilin (?), Beja, or Bishari ; the old Egyptians, modern Kopts, and Fellahin, besides the Agau and some other scattered communities in Abyssinia. * At Keren, in the Bogos country, Leo Beinisch tells ns that in 1880 he picked up enough of the Kaffa language from three slaves to determine its connection with the Hamitic family. To the saine connection he refers the Agaumeder and Khamant of Gondar, and some others on the north frontier of Abyssinia, about whose true affinities some doubt still prevails (" Oesterreichisohe Monatschr. f. den Orient," March 16, 1884, p. 94). Andorobbo mmmmBmm^ A&^ijm^m<^>i II iR^iflllH ^JlJPkfjIltVIU kv f' m APPENDIX n. k The Wa-huma, to whom the attention of ethnologists has scarcely yet been seriously directed, present some points of great anthropological interest, probably affording a solution of the difficulties connected with the constituent elements of the Bantu races in East Central Africa. Speke had already observed that the chiefs of the Bantu nations about the great lakes were always Wa-Huma, a pn«toral people evidently of Galla stock, and originally immigrants from the Galla country. Since then it has been ascer- tained that several Wa-Huma communities live interspersed amongst the mixed Bantu nations of the lacustrine plateau, and J. M. Schuver was recently informed that the Negro inhabitants of the Afilo country were governed by a Galla aristocracy.* From these and other indications it seems highly probable that in point of fact the Bantu peoples are fundamentally Negroes in diverse proportions affected by Wa-Huma or Galla, that is Hamitio, elements. The Wa-Huma, who imder the name of Wa-Tusi.f are found as far south as the U-nyamezi country, are by recent observers unanimously described as a very fine race, with oval face, straight nose, small mouth, and generally speaking regular Caucasic features. Such a type U found everywhere cropping out amid the surrounding Negroid populations throughout the Bouthem half of the con- tinent, and the conclusion seems irresistible that it should be referred to these Wa- Huma or Hamitic Gallas, probably for ages advancing as conquerors from the north< east into the heart of the contiiient. No distinct mention is made of the Wa-Huma speech. It is known, however, to differ from that of the Bantus proper ; and when we hear that the late King M'Tesa of TJ-Ganda spoke Galla as his mother-tongue, and was proud of his Galla ancestors, little doubt can remain on this point. The Wa-Huma are also distinguished by their intense love both of personal freedom and political autonomy, sentiments which are but feebly developed amongst the true Negro populations. Such is their horror of captivity and a foreign yoke, that those who have failed to maintain their independence are no longer regarded as true Wa-Huma. The very women who have the misfortune to fall into the hands of the Arab slave-dealers are looked upon as degraded for ever, and should they escape from bondage, are burnt alive by their own people. Traits of this sort would almost alone suffice to suspect at least a very large infusion of non-Negro blood in the Wa-Huma race. This element we may now trace with some confidence to the Hamites of North-East Africa as its true source. Jttu . Cbrayu . Dawari . Wolo Worro-Babbo Latuka . Meeha Raya Aiabo Lango Wa-Huma Wa-Tuai. Sidama . Itta Mountains, 41°— 42° E., 9°— 10° N. South-east of Ankober. West from Tajuir* Bay. West of Lake Ardibbo. Kast of Lakes Ardibbo and Haic. . ' Large nation east side Upper Nile, east of the Bari, south of the Shuli ; about 4° N. lat., 39° B. long. Speech akin to the Ilm-Orma (Qalla) dialect. South of Gk)jam. I West of Zobul. Somerset Nile between Foweira and Magungo. I Intermingled with the Bantu populations of the eastern equatorial regions. Kaffaland, south-west of Shoa, hitherto wrongly grouped with the Nubas.t • " Afllo wurde mir vom Lega-Konig als ein Negerland bezeichnot, welches von einer Oalla-Aiisto- kratie behorrscht wird " (Fetermann's Mittheilungen, 1883, v. p. 194). t And are no doubt also known by other names. Thus the Wa-'I'aturu shepherds of U-Kerew6 Island in Lake Victoria Nyanza appear to belong to the same connection. They are described by Stanley as " light-coloured, straight, thin-nosed, and thin-lipped," in contrast to their , Wa-Kerew6 neighbours, "a mixture of the Ethiopic and Negro type." ( "Through the Dark Continent," vol. i. p. 2dl.) % The natives of Eaffa, whose affinity to the Gallas has now been determined by Leo Reinisch. are collectively called Sidama by O. Chiarini in " Memorie della Societi Oeografica Italiana," i. Part 2, 1878. 1 fwtiimsifrr ia[4iiM^ . I «: • < ' ■rii" . n-i« i t'i-tijiii-ri t rvrdtiwiirir i t ■■mim'mi*hmi r of captivity and a dence are no longer sfortune to fall into for ever, and should Traits of this sort ision of non-Negro li some conMence to th of the Shuli ; about a (Galla) dialect. [[uatorial regions, with the Nubas.J 98 von einer Galla-Aiisto- shepherds of U-Kerew6 They are described by ast to their, Wa-Kerew6 Dark Continent," vol. i. ined by Leo Eeinisch. are Italiana," i. Part 2, 1878. Iia . Isa-hhaai- Modoba Oudabirai Habr-Awal Habr-Oerhqjit . Gadohursi Dalbakantu Wartingali Miijertkain Ltbnet Atoba Assa-Iinara Sidi-Habura Oaleita . Khatnir . Agau Agaumeder Khanumt . FaUuha . Somali. Between Zoilah, Harrar, and Berbera. Uplands Boath of Berbera. . East of Berbera to the Indian Ocean. Ckntmai, Ethiopian Bbanch. Afab (Aoal ok Danakil). Coaatlands between Abyssinia and the Red Sea, from Zula Bay to Strait of Bab- el- Mandeb.* Abyssinia. Lasta district Quara district | I Ch>ndar district j Collective name of numerous communities scattered over Abyss'nia ; claim Jewish descent, and are often called the " Jews of Abyssinia," but are probably of Agau stock. The Eura, Kudra, or Huaraza, as their language is diversely called, also resembles the Agau. The term Falasha, which in South Abyssinia takes the form of Fetya, is explained to mean " Exiles," and lends a colouring to the national tradition that they descended &om a certain Menelek, son of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. 8aho, or Shoho . . North-east fronUer, Abyssinia. ,::..-,;■ . j •fj NoBTHEHN Ethiopian Branch (Beia Division). Of the northern group of Ethiopian Hamites by far the most important are the Beja, or Bishari, who have all the greater claim to the consideration of the ethnologist, that their ethnical status has hitherto been persistently ignored alike by British Cabinet Ministers, officials, and newspaper correspondents. They are the unfortunate people, many of whose tribes have recently come into collision with the British forces in the SuaWn district, but who continue to be spoken of as " Arabs" by those states- men who are unable to recognise more than two races in Egyptian Sud&n, that is, the Negro and Arab. Thus, on February 27th of the year 1884, the Marqixis of Hartington telegraphs to General Graham : "TeU them we are not at war virith the Arabs, but must disperse force threatening Suakin." And General Graham himself sends a letter " written in Arabic " to the chiefs of the tribes about Trinkitat find Tokar, in which they are again assumed to. be " Arabs." We all remember the ignominious fate of that now historical document, which was set up as a target and riddled by bullets, as some dangerous fetish, by those Hamitic followers of Muhammad Osman Dakanah, whose own language, the To-Bedawieh, differs almost as much from Arabic as does that of the British troops itself. All this immediately preceded the sanguinary engagement of El Teb, and it may be asserted with Sir Stafford Northcote, though for reasons different from those implied by him, that " if the position of England had been such as it ought to have been, we should have had none of the slaughter which then took place." In fact, had a moderate amount of attention been paid by our Foreign Office to the true ethnical conditions in Egyptian Sudfin, most of the oompiications might probably have been avoided that have since arisen in that distracted region. But the necessity for a systematic study of ethnology has not yet made itself apparent to the rulers of the • Afar appears to be the most general national name, Adal that of the dominant tribe ; Danakil (plural Dankali and Danakil) is the name by which they are known to their Arab and Hamite neigh- bours. Chiarini {loe. cit.) recognises the close relation^p of Somali and Qslla, but asserts that the Afar lang;uage " ha ben poco 6i commune coUa gaUa." feS»SSiaffl'!S&fciW!iteT.m& 472 APPENDIX II. « most multifarious complexity of tribes and peoples ever ontrudted to the charge of a single Administration. The Bejas are the true autochthonous element in East Nubia, where they occupy the whole of the arid stoppe-lands stretching from the Nile to the Rod Sea, and from the Abyssinian frontier northwards as far as the parallel of Keneh and Kosseir in Upper Egypt.* Their main divisions are the Ababdeh, to be identitiod with Pliny's Qabadei, about the Egyptian frontier, the Hadendoah, Hassanab, and Demilab, along the coast- lands, and as far inland as the El-Matre wells on the Suakin-Berber route ; the Bishari proper, thence westwards to the Nile ; the Amarar and Ashraf north from the Suakin- Berber route, and here and there overlapping the Bishari ; the Kamlab, Ualenga, and Beni-Amer along the Abyssinian frontier from the Nile to the Bed Sea in the order here given. By Linant Bey (Linant de Bellefonds), one of the most intelligent observers of these peoples, they are described as of European (Caucasic) type, often very handsome, of a bronze, swarthy, or light chocolate complexion, with long, crisp, but not woolly hair, generally falling in ringlets over the shoulders-f So also the Maorobes, of the same region, were long ago described by Herodotus (Book III.) as •' the tallest and finest of men," to whom Cambyses sent envoys from their kindred of Elephantine Island, but failed to reduce. Nevertheless, through long contact with the surrounding African populations the present Bejas show here and there evident traces of Negro blood, conspicuous especially in the thick lips and broad nose of some of their tribes. On the other hand, the northern or Ababdeh branch have been largely assimilated even in speech to their Arab neighbours and hereditary foes, the Atilni (Ma'azeh) of Upper Egypt.J All are now more or less zealous Mohammedans, occupied chiefly with camel- breeding and as caravan leaders, governed by hereditary sheikhs, and like their Hamitic kindred elsewhere, distinguished by their personal bravery and love of freedom. Bya, the most collective national name, may be traced through the harder Arabic form Bega% of the tenth century to the Biiffa (/Sovyaeirai) of the Greek and Axumite (Geez) inscriptions, and thence perhaps to the Buka of the hieroglyphic records. These ^ovyatnai appear to be identical with the ^kiftiivK (Kopt. Balnemmoui) who are already mentioned by Strabo, || and who, from the third to the sixth century of the new era, infested the southern frontiers of Egypt. Often defeated by Aurelian and Probus, they nevertheless so continued to harass these outlying provinces of the empire, that Diocletian was at last induced to withdraw the Boman gn'siions from the regions of the Cataracts, replacing them by the warlike Nobatse tribes from the great oasis of Kargey in Upper Egypt. Hadendoa . • 1 -n j a i • Biihari . f *'*'^^®'' ouakin and the Nile, thenco southwards to the Ahysainian irontier. • ThHt this region was occupied hy the Beja from remote times appears evident from Macrizi, whose account of this people in his " History of Egypt " (end of fourteenth century) is drawn from the Isthakhri (tenth century) and other older records. "Le pays qa'habite ce peuple commence au hourg nomm6 Kharbah, pr^s duquel est la mine d'6meraude. Le pays des Bedjas se termine aux premieres frontiires de r AbysMinie. Ce people habito I'int^rieur de la preaqu'ile d'E(?ypte ju^qu'aux bordi de la mer, du c6t6 qui regarde les lies de Souaken, de Baza (Mass&wah), et de Dehlak." (Quatremfere's translation, in " Memoires sur I'Egypte," 1811, ii. p. 136.) t " r/Etbaye, pays habit6 par les Bichatieh" (Paris, 1868). X 'Iheso Ababdeh are very widespread, stretching from Keneh southwards to the Second Cataract at Wady- Haifa, where they meet the Konsi Nubians on the west, and the Bishari on the east. Their chief tribes, some of which also appear to speak Nubian, are the Nemriib, Gawalich, Shaw&hir (Kha- w&hi), Abudein, Meleikab, Tok&ra,and Oshabab. Russeger (" Reise," ii. Part 3, p. 193) estimates their number at about 40,000, nearly equally distributed between Egypt and Nubia. \ The Arabic 9^, now generally pronounced j, whs originally hard, like the Hebrew ^, as we see in the geographical term Nejd, by the local tribes still pronounced Negd. Hence Bega =» Beja. II AoiTrd ik rd irpo; voTov, TpoyXoivrat, ^Xcjv^vtv, icai NovjSai cai Mcya/Sapot ot iiirif) Zvqvqc AiOioirii. (Book 17, § 63.) mut figpWIP?!! i TW i i* I k'wt iM^i0mimif the empire, that m the regions of the reat oasis of Kargey ^b3rB8inian frontier. dent from Macrizi, whose Irawn from the Isthakhrl imence au bour|p nomn)6 aux premiferoB frontWres s borda de la mer, du c6t6 itreiU^re's translation, in to the Second Cataract ihari on the east. Their awalich, Shaw&hir (Kha- 3, p. 193] estimates their the Hebrew 3, as we see B Bega = By'a. yafiapot oi vir ifi £uqvi)i; B*m-Am«r " Halenga . Amarar . AbtMik . Copts FelUtMn ' '.■ *^ ;~. Siwah* Barea Bate or . Kutidma . Birkit Matalit . Abu-Sarib litla Bakka Aisiri TegtU . TekeU . Qndeyat . Mnaabat . Miuerbat . \ Along north frontier, Abytsinia ; both largely aiF()<-ted by Remitiu elements, and I often wrongly classed with the AbysHiniun Himyaritos.* Along the coast from Suukin northwurdM to litis- Beiiaits, and thoncn inland. Upper Egypt and Arabian Desert, from Kosiur southwards to the neighbourhood of Wady-Ualfa ; partly assimilated to the Arab tribes tm thuir nortliem frontier. EoYPTiAM Branch. The national name of the old Egyptians of Hamitio stock, and probably remotely allied to the Semites ; now represunted by the Copts and fellahin. Centred chiefly in the Asstut district, Upper Egypt, where some villages are entirely occupied by them; elsewhere thinly scattered over the country. Total population about 410,000. All are Chrintians of the Monophysito sect, but have universally adopted the Arabi\3 lan^uaKe. Coptic, representing the Old Egyptian of the hieroglyphics, has long been extinct, and is now used only as the sacred or liturgical language of the Coptic communities. It wafl still current throughout Egypt in the tenth century ; but since the seventeenth Arabic has been the exclusive language in the country. Tho agricultural element in Egypt ; are the direct descendants of the ancient Retu or Egyptian slock, but have been largely modified by crossings, especially with the Arab and Syrian Semites, who arrived in large numbers over 4,000 years ago, during the Hykaos dynasty, and who ag^in overran and reduced the whole country under the first Caliphs. In some rural districts the fellahin still take the name of Aulad-Masr, or " Children of Egypt." All are now Mohammedans and speak Arabic exclusively ; population about 6,000,000. Thn inhabitants of the Siwah Oasis ; akin to the Borbera of the Sahara ; still speak a Berber dialect ; all now Mohanunedana. VI. UNCLASSIFIED GROUPS. About middle course Mareb and headwaters of the barka, north frontier Abyssinia ; closely related in habits, type, &c., but of different speec h (Nere- bena and Bazena-aura) ; apparently the true aborigines of Abyssinia, f >Dar-Fur, chiefly towards Wadai frontier; of doubtful affinities (Barth, iii.,p. d39). The aborigines of Eordofan, apparently extinct or absorbed in the Tegel6 and Nubas. I Large nation sout i Kordofan, nsually classed as Nubiis, but quite distinct.^ In thirty villag. v uih and east of Mount Eordofan ; said to be of Funj origin. » Obeid district, KOr" fan ; claim descent from the Kunjara of Dar-Pur, where some I ' are still found ; ail now speak Arabic exclusively. • The Halenga of the Mareb river are, however, said to be of undoubted Amharic descent. t " Sie sind wohl der Ueberrest des alten Abyssinischen Reiches vor der Einwanderung der Semi- ten " (Munziger, op. eit. p. 76). The type of the Bas6 (whose true name is Kun&ma), as described and figured by F. L. James (" Wild Tribes of the Sud&n," London, 1883), seems distinctly Negroid. In the Preface, p. 1, of that work, they are stated to be "of a totally different type, much blacker and more closely allied to the poor Negro than any of their neighbours." Yet Munziger asserts that the ■' sogea- nanto Negertypus fehlt" (p. 467). The point must be finally decided by a study of their language, of which nothing appears to be known. Of the Barea there are two divisions, those of tho Hagr district who call themselves Nere, and those of Mogareb. There is no general national name ; Barea, meaning " slave," being simply an abusive term applied to them by the Abyssinians. X " Die Sprache von Tegele hat mit dem Nuba nichts gemein ; ■ ein genaueres Studium der erstem hat mich Bussegnr's Classification entgegen, davon iiberzeug^ " (Munziger, " Ostafrikonische Studien," p. 561). The same writer, a personal observer, assures us (p. 557) that there is absolutely nothing of the conventional Negro type about them ; and as their language is neither Arabic, Hamitic, nor Nuba, their true position remains still to be determined. ?«'9*i«SSBSSSS'-'~ pHUiUfiUB P - 1 ii i pi innii. ii w.ii i ;-lMi.B i 1 1 i J i m il,| i M |i M i pt ■i wnmg..Wi ^• . . i. '';:;■ I APPENDIX III. !»' • -'J?- J'S- ' 'V ; ; I. — ^The Egyptian Dynasties. The subjoined table gives the date of the beginning of eacu of the old Egyptian dynasties as preserved in Manetho's Chronology, according to the interpretations of M. Mariette, Professor Lepsius, and Sir Gardner "Wilkinson. ;« i '^■' Mariette. Ijepdas. WilUuoii. Dyna»tie». . > : : B.C. B.C. B.C. !. . I. . ! :t .■•' . . 6004 3892 2700 " ■'> II. . . " . 4761 3639 — III. . 4449 3338 — IV 4236 3124 2460 V 3961 2840 — ■''•«•>■ VI 3703 2740 2240 3600 2692 — 3400 2622 — feai ••- :.■>.;' '>;■'. vr,;',': 3368 2674 — 3249 2666 — ^"'v. • XI. . . . . XII. . . . . . 3064 (2423 12380 2080 ■ '■ '■■';■■ 2861 2136 . — ''-li>«, 2398 2167 — ■,_;■ XV 1 2214 2101 — XVI. . 1842 — XVII. 1684 — ' XVIII. 1703 1691 1620 XIX.. 1462 1443 1340 XX. . 1288 1269 1200 XXI. 1110 1091 1086 XXII. 980 961 990 XXIII. 810 787 818 XXIV. 721 729 — XXV. 716 716 714 XXVI. • V • 666 686 664 XXVII. 627 626 — XXVIII. • 406 426 — XXIX. * . 399 399 399 XXX. 378 378 378 Second Per aiau Conqi ie»t . 340 340 340 i(4i«wMkMMwyiWi ■-| ■-•-tl' ^--^f^-'^.: AITENUIX 111. iff II SuMMAHY OK Ancient Eoyitian FIisTonv with 1)atks Aax)Ri)iNo to thb * Calculations ok M. Marikitk and Dk. Uruohch. ANCIENT EMriBE. • .♦ ' •h of the old Egyptian ;he interpretations of Wilkinioii. B.O. 3700 ^i IW.. I. Dynasty : TntNlTE, bo called irom its capital, This, or TiiiMls. M* 5004, D.t 4400 B.C. , ■ Meneb (Mena), founder of the city of Memphis and of tho Egyptian monarchy. His name is mentioned hy all tlio anciont writers wlio liavo doalt witli the subject of Egyptian chronology, and their testimony is confirmed by the native documents, in which Menes is always referred to as the founder of the empire. But no monument has been discovered which can be traced back to his reign. ToTA (Athothis), of whom there are no records. Uenefhes I., to whom is attributed the step-pyramid of Saqqarah. ^ » II. Dynasty : Memphttb, bo called from its capital Memphis. M. 4761, B. 4133. Kakau (Kaieohos), during whose reign the worship of Apis was established at Memphis, and that of Mnevis at On (Heliopolis ). B. 4100. 3460 3340 3080 1620 1340 1200 1085 990 818 714 664 399 378 340 m. Dynasty : Memphttb. M. 4449, B. 3966. Snefru (Sbnefbu), the first king whose name appears inscribed on contemporaneous monuments, amongst which are the Pyramid of Meidum and a bas-relief of Senefru discovered in the Wady Magharah, Sinai Peninsula. These monuments already reveal a state of civilisation as completely developed as at the time of the Persian conquest, with thoroughly original features and all the marks of a long previous existence. The ox, dog, and other useful animals had already been domesticated, and the Egyptian language was completely formed and differentiated from the allied Hamitio and more remotely connected Semitic tongues. B. 3766. IV. Dynasty : Memphite. M. 4235, B. 3733. SHtrrtJ (Khttpu), that is Suphis, or Cheops, builder of the great pyramid of Gizeh. M. 4235, B. 3733. » Khafra (Ehephben), builder of the second pyramid of Gizeh. B. 3666. • M., Mariette. f B., Brugseh. MBnam 470 APPENDIX HI. MKtrKAiTBA (MTorRtwtTn), bulldor of tho thinl iiyruiuid of Oizeh. M. .'Jfi33. I >uriiiK tliiM iijgu\n to iwBumoiihapo. ThothniojfroatpyromicU iini coinplotcU uiul iium«roui» othor moiiuinoiit^ nrtH!tH(l. ( heoim wuh u wiir- liko prill' o, whoso triumphB ovor tho Anib Hixlouiim of Hiaui bfo rooonlod on tho huH-roliofn of tho VViuly MuKhiimh. Thin ora luiirkH tho culminating point of primitivo Kjfyptiin oiilturo. Tho (country aiipoarn to havo nmtlo jifToat advaniioH in inatorial proKnmH, and tho limitH of liio monarohy wore extondtwl HouthwardH to tho ( iitairactH. But tlio caj)ital was still at Momphis, in tho noighbourhoud of which wbb centred all the life and activity of the nation. ' '-r, V. Dynaity : Elkpii.\ntini. M. 3961, H. 3566. h. V Raenuber (Ratiiubeb), the first king whoso name was inscribed with a double cartouche. 13. 3433. Tatkara (Tankheueh), or Abba, to whose reign is referred the tomb of Tih at Saqqarah. B. 3366. ' • I. ; »/v^^ ■'^■ Unas (Obnob), builder of the so-colled Maatabat-el-Faraun, or groat truncated pyramid of Saqqarah. B. 3333. .'■■'S^: i» VI. Dyruuty : Mempiiitk. M. 3703, B. 3300. Mebika Tepi (Apapptjb), whose name occurs on nmny monumentfl throughout the whole of Egypt from Sun to Assuan, as well as in the Sinai Peninsula. He appears • ' to have ruled over all tho Lower Nile valley as far as Nubia, and is " traditionally said to have reigned for a hundred years. B. 3233. Vn. Dymtty : Seat of empire uncertain. ;-.-;>> ^ . ■ M. 3500, B. 3100. No known records. w No known records. VIII. Dymtty: Dates uncertain. IX. Dynasty: Hbrakleopolitb. M. 3358. No known records. X. Dynasty : Hebakleofoutb. M. 3249. No known records. APPENDIX III. m le thn»o groat pyraraid« 1. Chooim wttH u wiir- f Hinui Hro rttuordiid on nurkH tliH culiniiiutinff apiiuarH to hiivd mutlo jf tho monarohy woro ca}iital wan ntilt at itrei all thu life and I. itb a double cartouche. lb of Tih at Saqqarah. ■oat truncated pyramid s throughout the whole Peninsula. He appears I far as Nubia, and ia B. 3238. ars Th»> NoniDuhiit li'goudury tiiiooii NitiKirin in HupiHmed to have flouriHhvd in thiM obHinirtt pt)rt(Kl, ut whifh no iiioiuimontnr.rn knowu tottxint, and with wh'wU the Aniiknt Kmi'ihk ir. l)>-on^lit to ii domi, Tho firnt civil troubloa Imgin during tho hixtii dynaHty, when tlm UHurpor AklithocH rainoH tho fttaiidanl of revolt at Ilorakli^oiMilJN in tlio Dulta, ani'. fornitt a Hopuratu Htiito by (lotaching mivoral provincoH from tho tmipiro. Cluuon NitooriH, whoHu b<>auty and windoin aro pruiHtnl by Manotho and ilt'rodotUH, onduavourH in vain to ntem tho torront of ruvolt which now HpruiulH to the capital itHttlt. Hho periMhes in the attempt, and after her diath Kgypt rnmainH for upwardH of throo centuriuH divided into two kingdoms, onu conii)riHing the whole of tho Delta, the other the Nile Valley thence to Kthio[)ia. Accord- ing to some authorities the ninth and tenth dynaHties ruled in the north, tho eighth HinuiltaneouHly in the nouth. The usurpation of Akhthoes was attended by a sudden and hitherto unexplained eclipse in Kgyi)tiau culture, and for three centuries there is a (iomplete blank in the native records and monumenta. Egypt hoiself seems to have disappeared as an independent monarchy, and when she awakens again from this long sleep (uvilisatioa appears to resume its course almost without any traditions of tlie past. ^». • ,. 'f ', 'M » , MIDDLE EMPIRE. i ' XI. Dynatty : Tueban. M. a()64. '' ' 1 Enentef, MENTcnoTEP, names apparently borne by several kings of this dynasty alter- nately. During their rule the seat of empire was removed from Lower to Upper Egypt, where was now founded the great city of Thebes, capital of BO many subsequent dynasties. Bankuaba, the first king who sent an expedition to the land of Ophir and Punt (either Somaliland or South Arabia), as recorded on an inscription in tho "Wady Ilammamat, on the route between Ooptos and the Red Sea coast. B. 2400. The six kings of this dynasty, all of whom reig-ned at Thebes, had to struggle against the usurpers in the Delta, and apparently against foreign conquerors. They seem 1 .• have succeeded in reducing the whole country ; but for a long time thei^: authority was restricted to the t'hebais. They broke completely with the traditions of the past, and began again to build up the fabric of Egyptian culture almost from its very foundations. Hence their monuments are rude, primitive, sometimes even coarse. The effect they produce on the observer is that of a country reverting to the low state of rude civilisation from which it had already emerged under the first three dynasties. XII. Dynasty : Thebak. M. 3064, B. 2466. Amenemhat I., under whose rule Egypt again rose to a high degree of prosperity. M. 3064, B. 2466. OsoBTAssir I., by whom was erected the obelisk titill standing at HeUopolis. B. 2433. ■ i W, ,.| t ,i. ; l »y0l| |i | l ji ll t l .| ) || | ([|| l l | ) | i| l |) l || II M 478 APPENDIX III. Amenemhat II., 080BTA8BN TI., whose exploits are recorded in inscriptions in the tombs of Ameni and Ejiumhotep, at Beni-Hassan. OsouTASEN in., who invaded Kush or the land of Ethiopia stretching south from Egypt. Monuments recording his victories are found at Semneh, beyond the second cataract of Wady Halfah. B. 2333. Amenemhat III., who constructed extensive canals, dykes, and reservoirs, by which the inundations of the Nile were regulated. Amongst these vast works was the famous Lake Moeris in the Fayum depression, where this king also laid out the no less famous labyrinth. Eecords of the periodical risings of the Nile during his reign occur at Semneh, where he established a .■ Nilometer, by means of which regidar observations were taken and ,,., published throughout Egypt. B. 2300. All the kings of this dynasty bore the name either of Osortasen or i . i Amenemhat (Amenemheh). They reigned altogether 213 years, and their / ij. -J .; ;, epoch was one of great prosperity, internal peace, and foreign conquest. i .. They recovered Arabia Petrsea, which had been lost during the civil wars, and permanently reduced the whole of Nubia as well as a part of Ethiopia. , Their glory was perpetuated by monuments as prodigious and in some respects far more useful than those of the fourth dynasty. Such espe- ; fj cially was the vast Lake Moeris, constructed by Amenemhat III. for the 1 ' purpose of regulating the periodical inundations of the Nile. When the rise was insufficient the waters stored in this enormous reservoir served to irrigate the whole country along the left bank of the river as far as the , -V eea. When the rise was excessive, the overflow from the lake was dis- ■ charged through a system of sluices into the Birket-Karun. - ' From the tombs of Beni-Hassan, dating from this epoch, a long inscrip- tion h^ been recovered relating the career and beneficent deeds of Ameni, ' . a high official, who resumes his administration of the land in these words: " All the provinces were cultivated and sown from the north to the south. , Nothing was pilfered from my workshops. No little child was ever hurt, no widow oppressed by me. I gave to widow and wedded wife alike, and in all the judgments pronounced by me no preference was shown to the great over the humblest subject of the king." XIII. Dynasty: Thebak. M. 2851, B. 2233. Sebekhotep (Sbvekhotep), Neferhotep. kings of this dynasty. Names borne by nearly all the sixty Theban f The rise of the Nile in the third year of Sebekhotep III. is inscribed on the rocks at Semneh. Monuments of this epoch occur at San, Abydos, Siut, Thebes, the first cataract, Semneh, the island of Argo near Dongola, and elsewhere throughout Egypt and Nubia.. The empire thus appears to have been still held together. Nevertheless, almost immediately after the close of the twelfth dynasty the land was again di8tra(!ted by internal dissensions. icriptions in the tom'bB ing south from Egypt. Semneh, beyond the servoirs, by which the ; these vast works was , where this king also le periodical risings of lere he established a ions were taken and lither of Osortasen or er 213 years, and their and foreign conquest. ; during the civil wars, 11 as a part of Ethiopia, rodigious and iii some dynasty. Such espe- tnenemhat III. for the : the Nile. When the rmous reservoir served f the river as far as the rom the lake was dis- ;-Karun. B epoch, a long inscrip- eficent deeds of Ameni, he land in these words: the north to the south, tie child was ever hurt, wedded wife alike, and rence was shown to the •m rly all the sixty Theban p III. is inscribed on the ir at San, Abydos, Siut, Lrgo near Dongola, and ogether. Nevertheless, nasty the land was again ■>"•■ APPENDIX in. 479 r ■' XrV. Dynasty: Xoite. (So named from Xois in Lower Egypt, the native place of the reigning family.) : M. 2398. ■ No known records. The rule of these northern usurpers was followed by the most tremen- " ^ ^ ■ dous catastrophe recorded in the Egyptian annals, a catastrophe which for i a second time arrested the natural development of civilisation in the Nile Valley. Taking advantage of the rivalry between the royal house of Thebes and the Xoite rulers in the Delta, the nomad tribes of Arabia, Syria, and Mesopotamia overran the whole country, and for a time reduced it under their power. This was the so-called invasion of the Hyksos, or " Shep- herds," who overthrew the Middle Empire and set up the three following dynasties. Their capital was fixed at Tanis, near the north-east frontier, • where they have left monuments more beautiful and in better taste than those of the contemporaneous dynasties in Thebais. No known records. XV. Dynasty : Hyksos, or the Shepherds. M. 2214. t XVI. Dynasty : Hyksos, or the Shepherds ? XVII. Dynasty : Hyksos, or the Shepherds. B. 1750. Nub, or Ntjbti, during whose reign Joseph, son of Jacob, is said to have arrived in Egypt, where he rose to a high position. The seat of empire of these foreign Shepherd Kings was at S^n, in the extreme north-east. But contemporaneously with their rule in Lower Egypt and the Sinai Peninsula the native Theban kings appear t) have continued to govern in Upper Egypt as tributaries or vassals of the Hyksos. In the Sallier papyrus, now in the British Museum, occurs the name of Rajsekenen, a governor of " the southern town " (probably Thebes). An inscription in a tomb at El Kab also records the capture of Avaris, a chief stronghold of the Hyksos, by Ahmes (Amosis), successor of Basekenen, and first kin g of the next dynasty. NEW EMPIRE. XVm. Dynasty : Thebak. M. 1703, B. 1700. Ahmes (Amosts), who overthrew the foreign Hyksos invaders, and again raised Egypt to great power under a native dynasty. M. 1703, B. 1700. AicEinaoTZP ob Amunofh I. (Amenophis), who continued the victorious career of his predecessor, and extended the limits of the empire beyond the frontiers of Egypt proper. B. 1666. Thothmes I. (Thothmosis), a famous conqueror, who overran Syria, and who appears to have first introduced the horse into Egypt, At least no representations of this animal occur on any monuments before his reign. B. 1633. ■..■ •\«i«&1*jv-v:;*j si^ j ^lHjU'. ' .. "!W!4| W Wg^gni ' f|iyyW ^ APPENDIX m. Thothmes n., reigned a short time jointly with his sister, Queen Hatasu. B. 1600. Hatasu (Hastop, Makara, Amennuhet), continued to reign alone after the death of her brother, Thothmes II. She sent a famous expedition to the land of Punt, ^' as commemorated in the sculptures on the walls of Dair-el-Bahrl, at Thebes. Thotmes III., another brother of Hatasu, who reigned some time jointly with her, and for many years alone after her death. He was one of the most renowned of the Egyptian monarchs, who extended his conquests far into Western Asia, and founded the stupendous temple of Kamak at Thebes, covering its walls with inscriptions commemorating his mighty deeds, and giving long lists of the lands and peoples overcome by him. No other name occurs so frequently on monuments and remains of every kind throughout > , Egypt. B. 1600. Ahenhotef n. B. 1566. i Thothmes IV. B. 1633. Amenhotep m. Another great conqueror, who appears to have advanced the frontiers ' of the empire far into Ethiopia towards the equatorial regions. His glory is perpetuated by many monuments of a sumptuous character, conspicuous amongst which are those of Luxor and Eamak, besides the famous colossi of Memnon, which bear his name. B. 1500. Amenhotex TV. (or Khuenaten?) who under the influence of his mother, a foreigner of Semitic race, attempted to efPect a religious revolution, substituting the Semitic divinity Aten (Hormakhu, or the Sun's Orb) for the Theban god Amen. He also removed the seat of government from Thebes to the city of Khuaten, founded by him, and now known by the name of Tell-el- Amama. His religious system was continued by a few of his successors, but finally abolished by HoHEMHEB (HoRUs), who restored the old national worship, and brought back the seat of government to Thebes, effacing as far as possible all tractii of his innovating predecessors. The question has been asked whether the Hebrews, whose numbers had enormously increased during the nine or ten generations since their first arrival in Egypt, played any part in these religipus troubles, and especially in the attempt made by Amenhotep IV. to introduce a mono- theistic system. It is noteworthy that the beginning of the persecution of the Israelites, as related in the'book of Exodus, coincides almost exactly with the restoration of the royal authority and the overthrow of the usurpers. Several incidental circumstances make it highly probable that the Pharaoh " who knew not Joseph " was the undermentioned Sethi I. of the nineteenth dynasty. The cities of Pithom and Eamses, mentioned in the Bible as having been constructed by the children of Israel con- demned to forced labour, are also frequently alluded to in the Egyptian recorda, and by them referred to the time of Bamses II., successor of Sethi I. According to this view the persecution of the Hebrews is easily explained as the natural reaction of the native priesthood when restored to power against the foreign innovators. As might be expected, the theo- logical dissensions ended in the Exodus, that is, in the expulsion of the weaker faction from the land of Egypt. n Hatasu. B. 1600. LO after the death of her ion to the land of Punt, la of Dair-el-Bahr), at ne jointly with her, and e of the most renowned quests far into Western nak at Thebes, covering ighty deeds, and giving ' him. No other name I every kind throughout e advanced the frontiers quatorial regions. His a sumptuous character, ind Eamak, besides the B. 1500. his mother, a foreigner 'olution, substituting the )rb) for the Theban god from Thebes to the city by the name of Tell-el- r a few of his successors, id brought back the seat ossible all tracts of his ebrews, whose numbers 1 generations since their ) religipuB troubles, and V. to introduce a mono- Luing of the persecution , coincides almost exactly i the overthrow of the ) it highly probable that undermentioned Sethi I. L and Bamses, mentioned I children of Israel con- ided to in the Egyptian Ramses II., successor of of the Hebrews is easily priesthood when restored ht be expected, the theo- in the expulsion of the APPENDIX m. 481 XIX. Dynaaty : Theban. M. 1462. B. 1400. Bahbes I. (Baheses). M. 1462, B. 1400. Sethi or Meeptah I. (Sethos), a warlike prince who overran a large part of Western Asia, and constructed the first canal between the Bed Sea and the Biver Nile. Numerous monuments dating from his reign still exist at Kamak, Kumeh, Abydos, and other places, while of all the royal tombs on the left bank of the river at Thebes that of Sethi is in every respect the most remarkable. B. 1366. Bamses II., sumamed the Great, the Sesostris of whom so many fabulous events are related by the Greek historians. His triumphs are recorded not only on innumerable monuments in Bgypt itself, but also on others raised by him in the countries which he overran. Such is the rock tablet at the mouth of the Nahr-el-Kelb, near Beyrut, in Syria. During his reign of sixty- seven years he erected many famous buildings in J^Jgypt, besides appro- priating some of those built by his predecessors, which now bear his cartouche. B. 1333. The true character of Bamses It. is revealed in the ntmierous native documents of all kinds which survive from this period. Instead of extending the limits of the empire consolidated by Thothmes III., he scarcely succeeded in keeping it together. During his reign the colossal power built up by the sovereigns of the eighteenth dynasty everywhere shows symptoms of approaching decay. South, north, and west all the nations reduced by the Thothmes and Amenhotops break out in open revolt against their Egyptian masters. Nubia is agitated, and the walls of the temples are covered with representations of the many victories gained by the viceroys of Ethiopia over the rebels in this region. At the same time the northern provinces are threatened and sometimea hard pressed by the nomad Libyans from the west, and by other strangers with " blue eyes and light hair " descending on the African continent from the islands of the Mediterranean. The reaction against Egyptian supremacy also spreads to Asia, where the warlike Hittites, who fight with chariots, form with many other nations a formidable alliance against Bamses. After eighteen years of incessant warfare Bamses is compelled to moke a treaty with the allies, leaving them in possession of all their territories. The terms of the treaty, which is still extant, appear to be much more favourable to the Hittites than to the Egjrptian monarch. The more his history becomes unravelled the less the king shows him- self worthy of the surname of "Great" given to him by tha early interpreters of the Egyptian records. Enough is already known of his career to justify the conclusion of Lenormant that he was a commonplace individuality, an tmbridled despot devoured by an overvaulting ambition, and carrying his vanity so far as, wherever possible, to efface from the monuments the names of their builders and substitute his own. During his whole reign he lived on the reputation gained by an exploit performed when about twenty years old. Towards the close of the Hittite wars, having fallen into an ambush, he succeeded in rescuing himself and his escort by cutting his way through the ranks of the enemy. This skirmish reappears continually in all the large battle-pieces sculptured oij the buildings erected by him. It also forms the subject of a poem, which is the only specimen of Egyptian epic poetry that has survived to our times. 81 — AF. 482 APPENDIX III. The Book of Exodus stigmatiHeH Ramses as a tyrant in oonsequi" "e of the ptirsecutions which he inflicted on the Hebrews. But the &ame judgment will be confirmed by history as soon as all the documents have been interpreted which throw light upon his reign. The Egyptians themselves were heavily oppressed by him, and some contemporary records depict the sufferings, especially of the rural populations, in vivid colours. Sethi (Mebemfhtah, or Mensftah) II., son and successor of Bamses II., and identified by most Egyptologists with the Pharaoh of the Bible, in whose time the Israelites were led out of Egypt by Moses. His reig^ began with a formidable invasion of Libyans and their allies, the Achseans Tyrrhenians (Etruscans), Laconians, Sards, and other Mediterranean populations, who entered Egyjpt from the north-west, wasted a large portion of the Delta, and attempted to establish an independent state in that region. But they were completely defeated near Prosopis, and thenceforth Merenphtah reigned in peace. But after his death fresh complications arose, and were continued during the reigns of all his suc- cessors till the close of the nineteenth dynasty. The so-called Harris Papyrus, now in the British Museum, gives iiumerous details regarding these intestine and foreigu troubles, which were not concluded till the accession of Bamses III. XX. Dyntuty : Thkbah. M. 1288. B. 1200. Bamsss m. (the Bhampsinitus of Herodotus), last of the great E^gyptian warrior kings, whose famous deeds are commemorated on the walls of the sumptuous edifice erected by him at Medinet-Abu, Thebes. But his own wars were mainly defensive, his efforts being directed against the flood of barbaric invasion dashing with ever-increasing fury against all the frontiers of the empire, and hastening its approaching ruin. The Hittites again succeed in forming a fresh confederation, including even the Teucrians of Troy, besides the Pelasgians of the islands, the Philistines of Cyprus, and the Western I4byans. The empire is now attacked simultaneously from the north, west, and east, the Libyans falling upon the Delta, the Hittites overrunning Syria, while the fleets of the Pelasgians and Teucrians ratage the coast of Palestine. Bamses triumphed by land and sea ; nevertheless niunerous Libyan tribes secure a permanent footing in the Delta, while the Philistines settle in the districts of Gaza and Ascalon, where a hundred years later the Book of Judges ,desnribed. them as powerful enough to resist the Hebrews advancing from the Jordan. From the time of Bamses III. Egyptian chronology acquires a sort of mathematical certainty. An astronomical date recorded on a calendar engraved on tiie walls of Medinet-Abu, and calculated by Biot, fixe^ the c^cession of tius king in the year 1212 b.o. For the subsequent reigns the inscriptions discovered by Mariette in the tomb of the sacred bulls at Apis determine the number of years, months, and days during which each sovereign occupied the throne. All the remaining kings of this djrnasty appear to have borne the name of Bamses. But with the exception of Bamses YI. and Bamses IX.. none I APPENDIX m. 488 at in consequc f^e of ifB. But the bume the documents have gn. The Egyptians some contemporary iral populations, in f Ramses II., and the Bible, in whose s. His reign began allies, the Acheeans (ther Mediterranean est, wasted a large independent state in near Prosopis, and iter his death fresh reigns of all his suo- rhe so-called Harris >us details regarding lot concluded till the ^yptian warrior kings, ills of the sumptuous it his own wars were the flood of barbaric t all the frontiers of The Hittites again even the Teucrians of iatines of Cyprus, and i simultaneously from the Delta, the Hittites I and Teucrians ratage and sea ; nevertheless ing in the Delta, while calon, where a himdred IS powerful enough to )logy acquires a sort of ecorded on a calendar ated by Biot, tixep the the subsequent reigns b of the sacred bulls at id days during which » have borne the name and Bamses IX.. none of them were distinguished in the arts of peace or war, and during their rule Egypt continued steadily to decline in power and influence. Within a period of about one hundred and fifty years all the Asiatic provinces of the empire fell off one by one, and were never afterwards recovered. At this time also the high priests of Ammon at Thebes gradually usurped the snpreme authority, and ultimately seized the crown itself, although their usurpation was not acknowledged throughout the whole of Egypt. XXI. Dynastif : Tanith. M. 1110, B. 1100. HiR0\, a high priest of Ammon, was the reputed founder of this dynasty, under which the capital was again shifted northwards to San. During this period the country was for the first time invaded by the Assyrians under their king, Naromath (Nimrod). B. 1100. XXII. Dytuuty: Bubastitb. M. 980, B. 96h. SnESHONK or SnASRAinc (Sesonchis) I. This is the 6hishak of the Bible, son of Nimrod, who overthrew Boboam, king of Judah, captured and plundered Jerusalem, and ruled Egypt, removing the centre of authority to Bubastis in the Delta. His wars against the Jews are commemorated in an inscrip- tion on the walls of the great hall at Kamak, where a list is given of the towns and districts conquered or ravaged by him. B. 966. Most of the princes of this dynasty bear Assyrian names, such as Nimrod, Osorkon (Sargon), and Takeloth (Tiglath). They do not a[)pear to have been independent sovereigns, but rather governors or satraps, appointed by the Assyrian monaxohs, or possibly adventurers from the East. It is expressly stated that the father of the first Sheshonk was a captain of armed bands, who came from Syria to seek his fortune in Egypt. After the overthrow of the priest kings, the preponderance of Thebes ceased for ever. Henceforth all the djmasties belong to Lower Egypt, where they fix their reudence. They do not, however, form true dynasties of native princes, but rather a government of Mameluks, like those who afterwards ruled Egypt during mediaeval and later times. The Bubastite dynasty rapidly lost all authority, and after it had ceased to reign, Egypt was for a time divided amongst a number of petty military princes practically independent of the 'M.ei monarch. During this period the descendants oi the Theban high priests withdrew t(» Ethiopia, where they established a powerful state and laid claim to the sovereignty of all I^ypt. PiAKKHi, one Tian monarch, however, did not govern the country directly through provincial satraps, but divided the whole of Lower Egypt amongst twelve native princes, his vassals, who paid him tribute aod wore over- awed by Assyrian garrisons maintained in the chief strongholds. It i» this period of government by twelve tributary kinglets to which the Greek historians apply the term Dodeearehy. An oracle had foretold that the whole of Egypt would ultimately fall to the lot of whatever prince should offer libations to the god Phtah, tutelar deity of Memphis, in a brazen vessel. One day while the twelve vassals were sacrificing in the temple the high priest presented to them the golden vases which they were accustomed to employ on these occasions. But by an oversight he Utought eleven only for the twelve princes. Thereupon Psammeticus, Prince of Sais, who had probably arranged the matter beforehand, took his brazen helmet and used it to pour out his libations. But for a time the jealousy of his rivals compelled him to withdraw to the swamps of the Delta. Then courting the assistance of Greek and Cariau 1 APPENDIX III. 48S igning first at Tanis )d little more than a rnal dissensions and }r. The last of them 10, reigned six years ring his reign that iment discovered ^t I in the year 726 B.C., the following, or B. 700. ' King of Ethiopia." 8 under Esarhaddon, neiform writings dis- kings set up by him L^irhakah against the it Esarhaddon's son, ssor invading hosts from maneh the northern tm to the Ethiopians, the country directly [jower Egypt amongst ibute and wore ovev- )f strongholds. It is its to which the Qreek )uld ultimately fall to iie god Fhtah, tutelar ile the twelve vcwsals i»d to them the golden Be occasions. But by princes. Thereupon arranged the matter >our out his libations, im to withdraw to the 9 of Oreek and Cariau adventurers, by their means he reduced all the other kings of Lower Egypt, vanquishing them at the decisive battle of Momemphis. He followed up this success by throwing off the yoke of the Assyrian monarchs, and after expelling the Ethiopians from the Thebais, once more established a united Egypt from the Mediterranean to the Nubian frontier. Thus was founded the XXVI. Dytuuty : Saite M. 665, B. 666. PsAMMETiCHUS (Psametik) I., under whom the Greeks for the first time obtained a permanent footing in Lower Egypt, chiefly as mercenaries and traders in the Mediterranean seaports. B. 666. He encouraged foreign trade, established continuous relations with Greece and Phoenicia, and thus broke away from the old traditions of isolation and seclusion which had formed the guiding principle in the policy of the native sovereigns for many generations. Necho (Neco), son of Psametik I., who equipped a fleet to circumnavigate Africa, and attempted to reopen Sethi's canal between the Nile and the Eed Sea. He wan-ed at first successfully against the Assyrians, overthrowing their ally .Tosiah, King of Judah, at the battle of Megiddo ; but was himself ultimately defeated by Nebuchadnezzar at Kar-Khemish, in the Euphrates Valley. B. 612. But this check was compensated by a great increase of internal prosperity and the development of commercial relations with the surrounding nations. In his time the native arts and industries again experienced a short and last revival on the banks of the Nile. «» PSAUMETIOHUS II. B. 596. HoPHRA (Uahbba), or Apbies, son of Psammetichus 11., during whose reign many Jews settled in Egypt. He went to the aid of Zedekiah, who was besieged by Nebuchadnezzar ; but afterwards withdrew, allowing the Babylonians to capture the city and destroy the kingdom of Judah. His fleets gained some considerable triumphs in the Syrian waters ; but he was afterwards completely defeated in a war against the Greeks of Gyrene, who had already acquired great political power. Thereupon his army revolted, and proclaimed king his general Ahmes. Hophra was dethroned and put to death by the rebels in 571 b.o. Ahhes (Amasis), under whose long and flourishing reign Egypt recovered much of her former greatness. Amasis was a fortunate and able ruler, who distin- guished himself in the arts of war and peace. He even extended the limits of the monarchy by the acquisition of the island of Cyprus, which had been successively subject to the Assyrian and Babylonian empires. Of all the kings of this dynasty Ahmes most favoured the Greeks, and during his reign they were encouraged by many privileges to settle in the country. In the Delta, was now founded the Hellenic city of Naucratis, whose prosperity already foreshadowed that of the neighbouring Alexan- dria. Nevertheless this momentary revival of the ancient glories of the Egyptian empirecouldscarcelydisguisetiieinherentweaknessanddecayof the national 486 APPENDIX IH. institutiouB. Based exclusively on conservative principles and on the ' spirit of seclusion, the Egyptian civilisation could maintain it* ground only by continuing changeless. As soon as it came in direct contact with the outer world, and especially with the spirit of progress as personified in the Hellenic race and culture, it wa« doomed to perish. The military caste having nearly all migrated southwards, the nation • remained disarmed and at the mercy of foreign conquerors. Strangers detested by the people had been entrusted with the defence of the empire, and public discontent gradually broke into open revolt. A daring adventurer had already siezed the throne, establishing the twenty-sixth dynasty, and he had found the country so ripe for change that he showed himself even more favourably disposed than his predeces- sors to the foreigners. For a time this policy tended to enrich the nation, by the development of its commercial relations with the neighbouring states. But it ended by exciting the cupidity of the foreign settlers and mercenaries. When these turned their arms against their employers, Egypt had nothing to oppose to them except an unarmed multitude unaccustomed to military service. Hence soon after the accession of PsAMMBTicHUS III., SOU of Ahmes, a single campaign sufficed to extinguish the political independence of Egypt. This sovereign \vaB overthrown at Pelusium, on the north-east frontier, by Cambyses, King of Persia, who speedily reduced the whole country to the position of a Persian Ratrapy, 528 b.o. Cambtseb. 527. XXVII. Dynatty: Pembian. M. and B. 527. 521. Darius Hystaspes. Xerxes I. 486. Artaxerxes Longimanus. 465. Darius NothoB. XXVIII. 2)y«a« ripe for change than his predeces- ) enrich the nation the neighbouring oreign settlers and it their employers, Luarmed multitude e accession of to exting^h the :aB overthrown at King of Persia, ition of a Persian XXX. Dynaiiy : Sedbenyte. M. and B. 378. Neotanebo I. Defeated the Persians and ruled for eighteen years in peace. Taohos, who, aided by the Spartans under Agesilaus, repelled the Persian invasion conducted by Artaxerxes Mnemon. Neotanebo II., last native king of Egypt, overthrown by Artaxerxes Ochus, who restored the Persian rule, reducing the country to a Persian satrapy. Since then Egypt never recovered her political independence, and has been governed by foreigners or foreign dynasties. XXXI. Dynatty: Persian. M. and B. 340. Artaxerxes Ochus. Darius III. (Codomanus), overthrown by Alexander the Ctreat. XXXII. Dynasty : Maoedonian. 382. ALSXAimxB, founded Alexandria. he ancient Egyptian tional independence, in Lower Egypt. XXXIII. Dynatty: Gbeek or Ptolemaio. 305. Ftolxmt Laous or Soter, natural son of Philip of Maoedon, and oiie of the beat generals of Alexander, soon after whose death he founded the Lagide or Greek dynasty, which comprised the whole of Egypt, Libya, and part of Arabia. To these possessions after the death of Perdiccas were added Coele-Syria, Phoenicia, Judeea, and the island of Cypnis. He made Alexandria the capital of his empire, and here he built the famous Pharos or lighthouse, one of the " seven wonders " of the ancient world. He was a great patron of letters and founder of the academy and museum of Alexandria. Froimnr Philadblfhus, 286, son and successor of Ptolemy Soter, sumamed Philadd- phus, or " brother-loving," in irony from the circumstance that he put to death two of his brothers; developed commercial enterprise, encouraged literature, and caused the Hebrew Bible to be translated into Cbreek in the still extant version known as the Septuag^nt. Plotbmy Euebqetes I., 247, son of Ptolemy Philadelphus, who in a war declared against Seleuous Callinicus, overran Syria and Cilicia. But his victorious career was arrested by a revolt of his Egyptian subjects, which, however, was soon suppressed. The title of Euergetes, or " Benefactor," was earned by his prudent and beneficent administration. , ) FroLBHY Philopaiwb, 222, ironically named the "father-loving," for his cruelty in putting to death his father, as well as his mother, brother, sister, and uncle. He also at first persecuted the Jews, exposing them, as is said, to the fury of his (elephants. But when these animals instead of de- !ABtJBa 'i »- i " y i * .' "tt ^ tun i mi^Kmmmlt^mmm'i'mmm 488 Al'l'ENDIX III. Htroyiug his intunded victims turimd upon hJH own subjects, he conceived a great respect for the Jewish people, loading them witli many favours. Ptolemy EriPiiANEs, 205, or the " Illustrious," succeeded his father, Philopator, at the age of fourteen, and during his minority was compelled to cede many of his poBsessioiia to the victorious Antiochus the Great, ICing of Syria. These, however, were afterwards restored us a dowry when Autiouhu* gave his daughter in marriage to Ptolemy. Ptolemy Piiilometor, 182, son of Ptolemy Epiphanes, who in a war with Antiochus Ei)iphunes was taken prisoner and held captive in Syria. Thereupon the £gyi>tians raised his brother Physcon to the throne ; but ho was deposed and Philometor restored by Antiochus. Ptolemy Phyboon, 146, brother of Philometor, after whose death he again ascended the throne. He was a detestable tyrant, who on two occasions ordered a general massacre of the citizens of Alexandria, and put his own son Memphitis to death. Ptolemy Lathyrus, 117, so called from an excrescence on his nose resembling a pea, son of Ptolemy Physcon, who soon after his accession was banished to Cyprus by his mother Cleopatra. The crown was then bestowed on his brother Ptolemy Alexander, after whose death Lathyrus resumed the sceptre. He invaded Judeea, and wasted the country with fire and sword. Ptolemy Auletes, 81, that is, the "flute-player," illegitimate son of Lathyrus, surrendered Cyprus to the Bomans, also agi'eeing to pay them a large tribute. This caused a revolt amongst his subjects, by whom his daughter Berenice was placed on the throne. But by the assistance of his allies Auletes recovered possession of his estates, and put Berenice to death. Ptolemy Baoohus, or Dionysitts, 51, son of Auletes, reigned jointly with his sister Cleopatra, whom he married in accordance with the will of his father. In his time Pompey, after the battle of Pharsalia, fled to Egypt, and was murdered on landing at Alexandria. In the war that ensued with the Bomans he was defeated and drowned in the Nile. Cleopatra was then reseated on the throne by Ctesar, and reigned jointly with a younger brother, Ptolemy, whom, however, she afterwards poisoned. After the battle of Aotium she avoided falling into the hands of Ootavius by com- mitting suicide, With her the dynasty of the Ptolemies ended, and Egypt became a Boman province under the Emperor Augustus. Since then the country has continued to be ruled by foreigners or by foreign dynasties. )ct«, ho conceived many favours. Philopator, at tho I to cede many of , ICing of Syria. when Autiuuhuit r with Antioohus Thereupon tho t he was deposed 3 again ascended occasions ordered put his own son esembling a pea, was banished to bestowed on his rus resumed the h fire and sword. )n of LathyruR, pay them a large lom his daughter ince of his allies lice to death. f with his sister of his father. In > Egypt, and was ensued with the eopatra was then with a younger oned. After the 3ctaviu8 by com- oies ended, and Lugustus. Since 8 or by foreign Ababdeh AmbH, 206, 347, 349 Abadinh, 373 Abai (Bahr-el-Azmq, or Blue Mile), 47, 48. 131, 136 Abba Isle, 262 Abba Yarcd, 136 Abbi-Addi, 171 AbdtiroBul, 202, 212 Abhelbod, Boda (lake), 188 Abshafer, 167 Abu (City of the Elephant), 376 Ahnus, 40, 242 Danab, 218 Dibab, canal of, 427 D&m (Abdatn), 200 airg, 306 (ioMi, 200 Hableh (Khor), 258 Hamed, 207 Haraz, 260 Jerid, 233 Odfa, 221 Ramleh, 210 Kof, or Rufab, 121, 210 Simbel, 304 Sin (GedarSf), 240 Sir, 55 Somer, Bay of, 435, 387 Zaid, 241 Abukaya, 108 Abukir, Lake of, 427 town of, 427 Abula, 186 AbuHH-Yoaef, 136 ' Abutig, 390 Abydo«. 388 Abysrinia, 22, 128, 128 Abyninians, 126, 137. 162 Ada, 202 Ad-Ali, 206 AddigTHt, Add' I^rat, 176 Adel, or AdaTl, 101 Aden, Gulf cf, 351 Adoihan, or Adoimara, 101 Adua, 134, 171 Adulis, Bay of, 126, 181 town, 181 Af-Abad, or Tha-Mariam, 252 Afar, Country of the, 186 or Afer, 101 Afoj, 106 Africa, 1—80 Agau, 146, 194 INDEX. Agaum'oder, 143 AgHr, 1U8 Agalini, 234 Agermi, 304 Ageriit, 416 Agriculture of Africa, 22 Abyuiuiu, 156 Egypt, 357 Nubia, 20a UgHnda, 86 Ahaggar, Mount. 6, 17 Ahl-el-Wabar, 346 Abnaii-el-Medineh, 307 Ailet, 178 Akanayaru (Alexandra) Lake, 33 Akhinin (Sheinno), 300 Akiq. 233, 266 Ak to Gold Mines, 283 Akka, or Tikki-Tikki, 10, 82, 216 Akkara, 103 Ak«um (Akeaem6), 172 Alabaiiron, 318 Alalbed, Alelbed, or Allolebod, Lake, 138, 183, 187 Alata Fall, 40 Alatus, 212 Albauiaus, 360 Albert-Nyansa, or M' wfitan-N'z'g<), 30 Alelbed, we Alalbed Alegwa, 134 Alexaiidria, 22, 428 Algaden, or Algeden, 261 Algeria, 20 AIiu-Ambii, 202 Almeh, 351 Aloa. 228, 244 Al-Ordu, 290 A-madi (Madi), 108 Amam, 110 Amarah, 302 Ambabo, 206 AmbH-MHriam, 163 Shakka, 184 Ambukol, 200 Amhara, 142, 152 Amharinians, 100 Amideb, 252 Anaui, 26, 116 Angolola, 2U0 Angot, 184 Ankober, 201 Ankori, or Nkol6, 82 Aniiesley, or Adulis, Bay, 181 Ansiili Bhv, 137 AnHetiii Uiver, 132 AiiUlo, 130, 174 Antinoe, 306 Antiphyllus, 183 Apabu River, 45 Arabs, 17, 260, 264, 277, 297, 346 Arabian Desert, 312, 334 Mountains, 282, 314 Araj, £1, 323 Aradom, 174 Arambtt, 201 Arhnji, 242 Arboreh, 103 Ardibbo, 136 Arengo, 164 Argo Island, 301 Argobba, 135, 185 Ar-Hibbeh, 140 Arkiko, 178 AruBsi, 200 Arsiuoe, 364, 307, 415 Artali, or Ortoal^, volcano, 137, 186 Asiihian, or Asu'imara, 191 Ashangt, Lake, 1.'15 Asheten, Mount, 170 Ashfa, 168 Ashmunein, 306 Asmara, 177 Asua, or Asha, River, 41, 06 Assab, 208 Assaiisif, 383 Asaaka Rapid, 38 Assal, Lake, 187 Akssam, River, 171 Assebo, 200 Assiut, or Sittt, 300 AsBuan, 56, 374 Astapus, 217 Astaboras, 60, 217 Atbara, or Bahr-el-Aswad, 40, 60 Atfleh, 334 Athribis, 423 Atlas, Mount, 2, 5, 16 Atsa^, 177 Atsbi, or Atsebidera, 171 Attogra, 176 Aubakil Bay. 138 Aulad-Aii, 350 Aussa, 206 Lake, 188 1 490 INDEX. Avkrit (Ha-Wnr), 421 Awiuh, or AwMi, Rivnr, 131, 187 Aw»ii, l.'W Axuin, M* Akium Ayak, or DufHlla, 100 Ayi, 4ft A-Zand4,or Niam-Niam, Tribe, 107 Bab «l-('nilliau(l, 323 ol-liiiiniind, 323 ol-Mandnb, 207, 331 BadH, or Aiikta, liftke, 188 B.uliir, 266 liiidnMhiiin, 400 KiiKKitrA (UAK'Mil, 422 Heni-Aiiinr t'oiiiitrv, Mi Amen, 119, 1&2, 236 Ilauan, 896 llamran, 277 Shoiigiil, 241 Hiwf, ;»«6 Knnin, (tuK, 12 Itoraberata, 292 Berber, 230, 2A2 Herbxm. 1, 16, 17 Borlierina, or Bitrbarina, 2M Borouico, 2H2 Borii, 322 (Jaiii, 320 Ikirri, 102 Ikirta, 212, 224 Mountains, 218, 219 Benliilo. Heahlo, 131, 18ft But-Mali6, 149 niala Mountains, 130 Hiban el-Moluk, 383 Bideyat, 277 Biiil, 46 Biggeh, 374 Bijun, 01 Binn, 178 Billigong, or BeleniAn, 102 Bimbaihi, or Fadusi, 241 Birket el-Ohasal, (No, Nu), 42 el-Keiiin, 61, 398 Biaharn, 167 Biaharin, 234, 296 biaaagOR, U Biti.tr l«kea, 369 Bizan, 178 Bl<«inmyei (Bxja), 233, 234, 292 Blue Nile, m« Bahr el-Asraq Bogoa, country, 141 or Bilen. 147 Boi\iak, 119 Ronga, 216 Bongo River, 109 (D0rorDeran)23, 109 Bonia, 209 Bor, 106 fort, 106 Bordein, 410 Bomu, 24 Borena, 200 Bosniaki, 297 Boajeaman, 19 Bostan, 303 Botn el-Hagar, 802 Bridge Island, 86 Buahit. 136 Hubashis, 417 Bubastes, 803 Bukereb4 (Alice Island), 86 Bulaq. 406, 412 Museum, 400, 412 Buri, town, 168, 244 Mountain, or Uurtow Peak, 137 peninsula, 137 Burloe. Lake, 67, 424 Barun, 227 Burtshalta, 186 Bushmen, 19 Cafirs, M« Kafirs Cairo, 76, 406 Canary Isles, 9, 388 Canopis, 427 Oape Bon, 3 the, 12, 29 Coast, 26 Cape Vnrde, Cartliuge, 122 Cataruol Mimnttiins, 284 Challkut, 174 l^hanKar, 103 Chelga, 103 Chillimo, 186 Chora, 212 ('ircaiisinn*, 360 Claiidian. Moimt, 366 ClimatH of Africa, 9 Abyssiiiiaii, 139 Dar-FAr, 274 Egypt, 331 KaruKw6, HI KordofAu, 269 Nubix I'rupur, 280 Bhoa, 188 thM l« Ouft Crystal Mountains, 20 Cyreuaioa, 12, 323 Dahaina, 248 Dahbeh, 286, 299 Duhomey, 20 Dairah, 368 Diihlak, 139, 180 Dakhril, or Dakleb, 322 Daki^eh, 306 Dali (DAr), 279 Uambadsha, 168 Danianshur, 427 Dambal, 188 Dambulan, 148 Damietta River, 66, 860 or Dum&t, 423 Damot, 200 Danageleh, or Danagla, 246, 294 Danakil, 191 Uara, 280 Dar FOr (Darlur), 271 Fen it, 112 Nuba. 268 Darita, 163 Darmi, i 4 DHuri, 200 Davezut, 129 Daweh, 201 Debitroa, 176 Debra-Abi, Mount (Tombed^), 132 Berham, 200 Damo, 176 , BibonoB, 210 Mariam (Tan), 167 (Haik), 170 Sina, 132 Tabor, 136, 163 Werk, 167 Defafanir, 219 Dega, 167 Deir el-Bah&ri, 384 el-Bakara, 396 el-Medineh, 388 Dek,167 INDEX. erde, 9 3l Mimntuina, 284 at, 174 a, 103 , loa U), 186 212 " inm, SAO m. Moimt, 306 II of AfricH, 9 >yMmmii, 130 ir-FAr, 274 rypt. 331 kriittmi, 2AU ibiii I'ropor, 289 (M, 188 X lr Nubitt, 220 >, 416 [Uiige, 314 Palui, 47 i>, 91 iNuda, 9, 19 River, 6, 0, 8, 82 341 , «M Ouft 1 Mountain*, 20 lioa, 12, 323 m, 248 b, 286, 290 ley, 20 I, 368 c, 139, 180 !, or Dakleh, 322 h, 306 )ar), 270 uiHha, 168 lahur, 427 tl, 188 i1a«, 148 tta River, 66, 860 Dum&t, 423 ;, 200 :eleb, or Danagla, 246, 294 :il, 191 280 Or (Darlur), 271 en it, 112 uba. 268 I, 163 i, i '-i , 200 ut, 129 1, 201 oa, 176 -Abi, Mnnnt (ToDibed^), 132 erham, 200 'amo, 176 , ibonoq, 210 [ariam (Tan), 167 laik), 170 ina, 132 abor, 136, 168 V^erk, 167 tn«, 219 167 lUBahari, 884 l-Bakara, 396 i-Medineh, 388 167 Drlol, or DhIIoI, 137 |)i>m, iir Duem, Hi Dcmbim, 162 I>«mbi, 18A Hem Idrii, 113 Hiiloinian, lis 'li\wr lis Dmiab, 1^^ Iti'tidfil' feiver, i9, 233 I).n(ier«h, ;i87 I)(MikH. Of tHnka, IS, 1(JS, I ' «, 220 n^rr. 303 h im, 334 Di'Kuuk 428 Dident, J Diiria, or Digmn, 17& Dildilla, 211 Dima, 167 (dir), 270 Dinka, Ht Dwika Dionyniais 398 Oiur, 111, 121 River, 12, 46 Ohattai, 112 Diriko, 186 Dineb, 181 Dmhi, 46 Dubiirik, 169 Dolaiieh Vobano, 186, 188 Ooggoru, 46 D'ighurKuru, 46 DoKoleh, 268 Doka. 249 Doko, 19, 216 Dolka, 262 Dom-HiilMman, 280 Dttmlilii, 180 Dongola el-AJniM, or Old Dongola, 299 el-Jedid6, or New Dongola, 64,290 Dongnr, 248 Dor, or Di^rAn, 109 Draa, Wudy, 8 l)ufll6, 99, 100 Dumiat, 423 Diilga, 64 DmiT4 M'bnm, 88 Ngal, or Mount Oeleate, 33 Edd, 137. 183, 101 iM-Damer, 262 Edfu, Teb, ApollinHris magna, 377 Edk«, Luke, 427 £aka or EdkO, 427 Efat, 202 Egan, Mount, 186 Egypt, 67, 307 Egyptian!, 341 Eilethia, 879 Eju, 200 El-Abbaaaieh, 413 El-Aruj Oaiiis, 328 El-Ariah, 421 El-At8ban (Khdr), 242 Elba, Mount, 283 El-Bok Mountains, 820 El-Birket, 269 Elephantine, 66, 376 El-Fasher, 272, 279 El-Fostat, 406 El-Ohard (dftr), 270 El-Uisr, 369 El-HaUah, 276 Eliab, 106 Elit, 361 El-Jebe). ;14 KIKitb. 379 HI.Knhirah (Cairo), 405 K,l-KHii(arn, 364, 419 Kl-Knur, :1U2 KI-Ki-f, 2A4 Kl-Khargf)h. 388 Kl-I^.hun. IllMhon, 397 K|.Mnkh«ir, 262 KImiim. 20 El N'atriin VMllny, 326 Kl-Olieid, Liibnil, 206 Kl-Ria, 123, 124 KthioiiiiiM, 236 Kalieb, 373 Fadaai, 240, 241 Fada, 60 Oash Province, 249 < r Mareb, 60, 260 Oavdgivla, 136 Gaza, 2 Oedaref, 141, 219, 241, 240 Gema, 264 Oera, 213 Gerasheb, 64 , Gtermama, or Kaiani, 188 Oeorgiuna, 360 Ghawiiri, 36: Ghagars, 361 Ghebiaso, 212 Ohesha Mountains, 40 GhesHii, 241 Ghilieh River, 212 Ohibhas, 119 , Obiman, 213 492 INDEX. Ohobiat, Qilledat, or Gowameh, 261 Gibraltar, 2 Ginjar, 227 Girgeh, or Gergu, 3i8 Gish Abai, 48 Gisi, 234 Gita-N'zig6, Lake 37 Gizeh, Pyramids, 401 Town, 401, 413 Gnuma, 263 Goang River, 60, 163 Gobo. 224 Godo Fuliisai, 176 Gojam, 142 MoiintainB, 128, 186 Gojeb, 191 GbJima, Biver, 136 Golo, 112 Gomashii, 240 Gondar (Guendar), 147, 161 Gondokoro, 41, 101 Gondu, 113 Gonga, 200 Gorgora, 16? Gorgur, 248 Gorieno, 212 Goro-Chen, 186 Gos-Kejeb, 249 Government of AbyBsinia, 169 Egypt, 441 Eafikland, 216 Kordofan, 257 Shoa, 196 Uganda, 87 Gowameh, 261 Great Oasis, 322, 391 Gnbat, 246 v GuarJdiui, Cape, 9, 172 Gudara, 168 Guilda-Guddi, 176 Gudru, 196, 200, 212 Guft, 341, 386 Gugsa River, 186, 212 Gulf of Aden, 331 of Guinea, 3 Guma, 212 Guniara, 163, 164 Gumbali, 224 Gumus, 226 Mountains, 218 Guna, Mount, 130 • « Gundet, 176 Gnra, 170 Gurageh oountr}', 186 Gurageh, 186,212 Gurger, Mount, 273 GuB, 385 Gwalima, or Golima, IS6 Gypsies of Egypt, 361 Babab, 149 Habad, 252 Habesh. 123 Hadas, 200 Hadendoa, 150, 236 Uagiir, or Hugar Ale!i Nejrsn, 132 - B&ik, Lake, 135, 170 Hakim, Mount, 20f> Halai, 176 Httlfaya, 244 Hallenga, 235 Ham, 171 Uamamat, 316 Uamasen Plateau, 188, 177 Humdo, 186 Haiuer, 178 Hamme,, 227 Hamr, '.a 7 Humra'i, 390 Himraa, 236 Hamtfnga, 171 Hand' lb, 262 Hanflla, or Himlale Bay, 137 7;own, 183 Hiiniiok, Cataract, 65, 291 Uanibat el-Madfuneh, 388 Hatamaya Luke, 202 Ha) rar, or Herrer, 193, 202 Harrari, 204 Hrshin, 266 Hitssanieh, 236, 266 Haussec, 174 Eawakil, 142, 182 Ilawin, 297 JIawar, 421 Hawarah, 860 Hei6, 46 H«ro, 418 Heliopolis, 418 Helwan, 413 • Heradeopolis (Beni-Suef), 307 Horrer, 202 Hiffi, 113 liittites, 382 Hofrah, 274 Holy Cross, 106 Homr.Hamr, or Beai-Hamraii,2i6, 277 Horros, 200 Hotem, 233 Hotumlu, 178 Hotta, Mount, 186 Hottentots, 17, 19 Huma, Wa-Huma, 79 HurtowPoak, Buri.or Mount Awen, 137 Himyarites, 178 Ibrahimieh Canal, 896 Ibsambul, 303 Iddio, or Makruka, 107 Ifag, or Tilag, 163 Ifat, 190 Igharghar Biver, 6, 8 Illahun, 397 llak. 373 Ilm-Orma, 190, 194 Imaraha, 136 Imazigben, 17 or Kabyls, 17 Imohagh, 17 or Tuareg, 17 Inarya, 186 Industries of Africa, 22 Abyssinia, 166 Dar-F6r, 278 Egypt, 355 Nubia. 294 Uganda, 86 Ingassana, 227 Iimabitants of Afrioa, 16 Abyssinia, 146 Dar-Fflr, 276 Egypt, 341 Innarya, 213 Kaffaland, 214 Kuragw6, 81 Kordoffin, 261 Nubia proper, 292 Shoa, 190 the Equatorial Begpion, 76 the Sobat Basin, 1 16 Uganda, 83 U-Nyoro. 92 Upper Nile Begions, 97 Upper Nubia, 222 Inderi, 113 Innarya, Ennarea, 212, 213 lushatkab, 169 Irba, or Soturba Mount, 282 Irenga, 103 Isanga Biver, 79 Ishing, 117 Ismailia, 101, 419 Ismailieb Canul, 406 Ismailiya, or Gondokoro, 41 Ismala, 167 Issa, 193 Country, 193 Isthmus of Sues, 886 Ittu, 200 Jabarta, 190 Jabus Biver, 212 Jaggada, 199 Jalin, 234 Jalo, 328 Jumna, 200 Jangheh, tee Denka Jaiijero, 214 Juiahub, 363, 396 Jail, River, 109 .Tebala'in, 224 .febel Abu-Ahraz, 274 Abash, 219 Ain, 274 Anka, 274 Arang, 136, 219 Ardan, 246 AtUka, 316, 416 Barkal, see Barkal Dango, 274 Peyer, 258 Dokhan. 316 Dor, 274 Dal, 240 el-Ahmar, 322 el Ain, 268,274 el-Hillet, 274 Farageh, 282 Fatireh, 316 Gekdul, 287 Gbarib, 316 Gilif, 287 Guleh, 219, 227 Hadid, 274 Haraza, 268, 270 Kabret, 188 Kaja, 268 Katberin, 316 Eordo^u, 268 Magaga, 287 Medob, 274 Melekhat, 60 Mokattam, 41 1 Nuba, or Dar-Nnba, 268 Olba, 282 Shellala, 316 Shikr, 284 8i, 273 Silsiloh, 318 Simrieh, 288 Tabi, 219 Urakam, 318 Zabarah (Smoragdu), 316 Jemid, 45 .Temma, 131 Jenda, 162 Jeng, see Denka Jenkoli-Gardo, 41 l ^iUL')^'lly » lJB!sl ■ J,J^.l»M ^ ! * <»■'^!'■«' ^ ^ '' ^^»» ' V ' l";%^^^ INDEX. 408 -Nyoro. 92 pper Nile Regfions, 97 pper Nubia, 222 , 113 fo, Ennarea, 212, 213 ikab, 169 )r Soturba Mount, 282 I, 103 I River, 79 t, 117 lia, 101, 419 iieh Canul, 406 liya, or €k>ii(Jokoro, 41 I, 167 93 lountry, 193 uB of Sues, 886 200 ta, 190 ' Kiver, 212 da, 199 234 328 1,200 leh, see Denka •0, 214 ub, 353, 396 iiver, 109 im, 224 Abii-Ahraz, 274 ibasb, 219 lin, 274 inka, 274 irang, 136, 219 irdan, 246 Llttika, 316, 416 larkal, s«e Barkal )aiigo, 274 >eyer, 258 )okhan. 316 )or, 274 )ul, 240 l-Ahmar, 322 1 Aid, 268,274 1-Hillet, 274 I'arageh, 282 i'atireh, 316 }ekdu1, 287 }barib, 316 }ilif, 287 Juleh, 219, 227 isdid, 274 laraza, 268, 270 Cabret, 188 Caja, 268 Jlatberin, 316 Lordofan, 268 klagaga, 287 iledob, 274 Helekhat, 60 kfokattam, 411 'f uba, or Dar-Nnba, 268 )lba, 282 ibellala, 316 Sbikr, 284 Ji, 273 iilsiloh, 318 fimrieh, 288 I'abi, 2J9 Jrakam, 318 Sabarah (Smaragdu), 316 1,45 m, 131 1, 162 , tte Denka oli-Oardo, 41 Joikbdb, 396 Je:-aiad, 297 Jorbu late, 9 Jezireh, 413 Jezirut eUJeziret, 242 Jeziret el-Randab, Isle, 412 Jews, 360 Ji,4d Ji, or Pango, 112 Jilli, 300 Jilalu, Lake, 188 Jimma-kaka, 213 Lammara, 212 Jinja, 37 Jin, 108 Joliba River, 16 Juba, River, 37, 190 Juda, Mount, 187 Jiimmas, 200 Jur, 109 Eababish, 260, 264 Kabena, 212 Kabondo, 90 Kabyles, 292 Kadalo, 225 Kadia Rapid, 88 KaSk, 124, 186, 213 Kaffaland, 214 Kafu, 38 Kafirs, 19 Kafr, 373 duar, 427 el-Zaiat, 426 K'igera River, 33 Kagheyi, Kage'i, 78 Ka'ibar, or Kajbar, 56 Kajimar, or Kajmar, 270 Kainopolie, 386 Kaka, 122 Kakuak, 107 Kalabshah, 306 Kalai, 297 Kalahari. 10, 13 Kalaka (Kobesh), 280 Kaliha. 100 Kalo, 186 Kam, or Ham, 171 Kamant, 147 Kamlin, or Kamnin, 248 Kanara, 248 Kara^^w^, 76, 80 Karaun, 417 Karaneo, 167 Karkoj. 241 Kaniak, 69, 380 Karre, 45 Karunm, 38 Kasam, 188 Kasen, 177 Kashg^, 269, 270 Kasr-Dongola, 299 Kerun, 398 Kaasala-el-Luz, 249 Katawana-LuHJerri, 83 Katonga River, 34 Katabathmoa, 436 Kavirondo, 88 Koderii, 107 Keilak River, 267 Kolb, 241 Keneh, 68, -386 Kenia, Mount, 3 Kens, 296 Kenisseh, 244 Kenuzi, 296 Kepial, m Eerakeri, 273 Keren, 132, 177 Ketiitu, Rapid, 38 KhaUg Canal, 406 Kham, 314 Khargeh Oaiiis, 322 Town, 392 Khartum, Town, 244 Province. 239 Khmunu, 396 Kidi, 46 Kieti, 46 Kilero. 94 Kibrealeh Mountaini, 187 Kii, or Kitsh, 105, 106 Kilima-N'jaro, Mount, 8, 16, 33 Kioja, or Kapeki, 38 Kir, 46 River, 40 Kiradid, 46 Kirin, 226 Kirim, 117 Kirota, 94 Kirri, 102 Kishar (Yavash), 116 Kitwara. 91 Kivira, River, 37 Kobbo, 170 Koanza, 7 Koarata, 163, 166 Koboh, 274, 280 Kobesh (Kalaka), 280 Kodo Ftilassi, 176 Koho (Khor), 104 Koft, 386 Koikoin, 19 Kokfara, 201 Koki, 82 Kolzim, 416 Koma, 117 Konianji. 117 Komanjok, 117 K6ii..Ombo, 376 Kdm-es-Sultaii, 389 Komkom, 45 Kordofftn, or Eordofal, 267 Korosko, 297, 303 Desert, 286, 28C Korti, 209 Koskoam. 166 Koseir, 59, 386 Koyeh, 303 Kosseir, Old, 387 Kuan, 46 Kuba, or Monkins, 222 Kuban, 283 Kiibti, 225, 386 Kughuk-Ali, 112 KuHt, 262 Kufra, 330 Kufro (Kaftiro), 81 Kugu Peak, 106 KuUu, 213 Kumaili, 129, 174 Kiinama, 229 Kunjara, 261, 276 Kunene, River, 7 Kurkur, 322 Kumah, 383 Kus, 386 Kutubbeb, 428 Kredi or Krej, 112 Kwalla AVageru, 136 Lahore, 100 Lado, or Lardo, 41, 102 Laki, or Dsmbal, 188 LaUbala, 170 Lango, or Longo, 03, 08 Lustu, 124, 128, 136 Latopolis, 379 Lalukn, 102, 222 Leado, Lake, 188 Lega, 117. 222 Lemuria, 13 Lesi, 108 Lessi, 46 Let-Marefla, 201 Levantines, 360 Lialui, 46 Liben, 212 Libya, 123 Libyan Monntaira, 316 Desert, 58, 329 Plateau, 319 lieheh, 200, 210 Limmu, 196, 212 ' Little Oasis, 391 Limpopo River, 3? Little Dieppe, 28 Liwumba, 32 Loheit, 206 Lofit, or LalSt Mountains, 104 Logone, HI Ifiliugati, 80 Lokoya Mountains, 102 Lol, 46 LoUo, 46 Loma, Mount, 8 Lori, 108 Lorouio, 104 Luajerri River, 87 Luflji, Wady, 7 Lnoh, or Luo (Duir), 111, 121 Luqsor, 380 Lur Country, 94 Lur, or Luri, 98 Luwamb6, 32 Luxor, 380 Lycopolis, 390 Maazeh Tiibe, 347 Madagascar, 9, 13, 15 Madeira, 9 Madi, Bahr-el-Jebel, 98, 09 Yei Basin, 107 a-Madi, 108 Mafla. 9 Magaga, 288 Magdnla, 126, 136, 168 Mug^ch River, 162 Maghaga, 396 Maghreb, 1 Magungo, 94 Mahughi, or Mahahi, 94 Mahallet-el-Kebir, 426 Mahara (Khor), 242 Maharrakah, 306 Muhendi. 306 Mahatti, iT^ Mahdera-Mariam, 164 Mahmudieh Canal, 860 Majettieh, 201 Makaleh, 174 Makraka, or Iddio, 107 Makarakara, Lake, 8 Makedo, 41 Mallaweh-e -Arish, 396 Mala, 117 Maldines, 22 Mameluks, 412 Mandara or Mandala, 1 13, 427 Manfalul, 396 Manhusa, 168 i.j.i!'"t'i,iiim i' n ' :i:.lji)iii*»Tiiinf" i l il Ji li lllHIIHIpH w I BiiiwiwwiT i i«iii -i i«(mw«wpp|iymfwnwwwp# 494 ManBunh, 423 Maraka, 293 Marawi, 298 Maaarah, 318 Marea, US Mareb {River), 80, 131, 216 Mareotio, Mariut, Lake, 68, 862, 430 Margablnh. 208 Mariut, Lake. 427 Canal, 427 Marrah Mountains, 271, 273 Murtola-Mariam, 167 Mustti, 77, 87 Mosoarenaa, 15 Maicarenhas IiletB, 16, 16 Masr, 406 Maaindi, 94 Maasabat Nomads, 276 Maaaalit, 27? Massawah. Medaawa, or Maaaaftlia, 139, 178 Mastaba-el-Fatftiin, 399 Matanieb, 398 MatHrieh, 413, 428 Matniha, 107 Maize Malea, 117 Maufjrabina, 268 Mauritania, 1, 17, 28 Mayraidut, 114 Mnzin, 347 M'bakoira, 94 Mbaringo or Baringo (Bahr Ingo) Lake, 41 Mecha, 161, 199 Hedinet-Abu, 382 el-Fayum, 898 Mediterranean, 2, 8 Meidum, 398 M'jerda, Kiver, 8 Mekheir, MukheTref, or El-Mexhe- rif. Me Berber Meks, 434 Melbe'ia, 269 Memphis, 400 Muttas, 200 Menahat, 373 Menuf, 424 Mennfieh Canal, 66, 414 Menorachi, 280 Mensa, 147-8 Mensaleh, Lake, 67, 389 Town, 428 Meri, 46 River, 40 Meriddi, 46 Meroe, 247 Mtru, 248 Meaaurat, 246 Meshareh, 248 Meshra-er-Rek, 46, 112 Messalamieh, 243 Metammeh, 246 (GaUbat), 248, Metal iteh. Mount, 184 Mevaru-Lnuerri, Gulf, H8 M'fnmbiro, Mount, 3, 74, 81 Mintshar, 186 Mimeh, 396 Miar, 307 Miktinab, ^61 Mit-Obamr, 428 Mivaks, 119 Mit>RHhine1i, 400 M'koli, Mt Unkori M'kulu, 178 ModHlLlo, 192 INDEX. Mceria, 63, 397 Mogar, 212 Mogoreb, 231 Mograt, Rapid, 64 laland, 297 Moluya, River, 8 Monbuttn, 18 Monkorer, 168 Monkina, 226 Mori, 89 Moru, tee Mnra Mota, 167 Mountains of the Moon, 3 Moaambiqiitt, 18 M'poro, 82 M'ruli, 88, 94 M'Ubbi, 88 M'tagatH, 81 Mudar, 436 Mugi,100 Mnllu, 202 Muiiftt Khnfii, «m Minih Murohifwn Falls, 88 Bay, 88 Mum, 107 Muaabat, 261 Mussali, Mount, 187 Mutogna, 180 Mwam, 32 M'wntou, N'aige, mo Albert Nyanni Mwam (Liwumba, Liivanibe), 32 M'werango, River. 88 Myoa Hormoe, 387 Nabnlagala (Ullagalla), 88 Nauorans, 486 Nafka, 149 Nag, 373 Naga, 246 Nahieh, 373 Nakfa Plateau, 132 Mountains, 220 Nakoni, 38 Necropolis of Thebes, 382 Nam-Gel, 46 Nam-Pol, 46 Nunda, 88 Napata, 298 Nasser, 119 Natron Lakes, 188, 326 Nasleh. 373 Ndiekens. 119 Nebtab, 149 Neflsh. 419 Nokhub, 879 KM, 281 Nerebena, 230 New Sobat, 244 N^Ami, 8 Niambara, or Niambari, 104 Niam-Niam. or A'gaitde. 18, 96, 107 Nicropolis, 434 Niger, River, 6, 6, 8, 22 Nigrilia, 2, 14, 16 Nigritiitns, 292 Nile, 6, 6, 9, 29, 31. 38, 62, 76, 96, lie Nile, barrage of the, 418 at Damietta, 66 ,at RosettM, 66 White, M» Balu>el-Abiad Blue (Abaii, or Bahr-el-Aaraq), tee Abai Nile at Alexandria (Tasgur4, Ka- geia), 83. 81 of ihb Blacks, 7 No, Lake, 47 >i No, Nu, or Birket-el-Qhacal, Luke, 42 Nomios, 200 Nora, 180 Nubas, 263 Nubia, 22, 76, 281 Upper, 216 Desert of, 286, 286 Mountains of, 282 Gold Mines of, 283 Nubians, 292 Nuer, 42, 114, 116 Nuri, 298 NyHmesi (U'N/amesi), 74, 77 NyHmoga,'94 N yanza, or 1J'-Kerew4, Lake, 6, 7, 34, 74 Nyenam, 46 N^awa, 90 i Obbo, 99 OSok, 207 Obongo. 19, 82 1 Ogow4, River, 7, 19, 22 Old Cairo, 411, 412 Sobat, 244 Kosseir, 387 Om-Bedr, 277. 280 Ombos, 71, 376 Omdurmaii, 244 Cmshanga, 280 Orange, 7 Orange River, 18 Orghesa, or Dideaa, 213 OrSmo, 194 <»rtoale, 137, 186 Pa-Amen, tee Thebet Pabast, 417 Pamsjat, 396 Pango River, 46 Panom, or Fautentom, 105 Paayatoli, 94 Fa-»el)ak, or Arainoij, 897 Pelusium. 364, 421 Bay. 331 P6-Ra, 418 Pomba, 9 People of Farftn, tee Copts Pentodactyla (Jebel-Faiageli), 282 Petrifled forests, 821 PbaroK, 428 PhilOB, 378 Philas, 66 Phoenicians, 17 Pinyin, 46 Pithom, 418 Port Said, 419 Porto Santo Ides, Prince Island, 9 Pyramids of Qiarji, 401 Badesieh, 288 Bagad, 138 Ragat, or Betaf; 41 Ragwdli, or Bagoleh, 187 Rahad, or Abu Ahraa, 49, 186, 137 Raheita, 191, 210 RHmleh, 434 RAsBenas, 282, 816 oI-Bir, 207 Dajan, 136 «1-Fil, 136. 248 RAa-«il-nimBah, 387 »1-Kbartuin, 244 Mohammed, 387 Rm vera, 81 iJM i |HH lli ri i r' INDEX. 4D5 0. Nu, or Birket-el-Qhiisal, Lukt-, omioa, 200 oru, 180 abas, 263 iibis, 2-2, 75, 281 Upper, 216 DeMrt of, 286, 986 Mountain« of, 282 Qold Mines of, 283 ubiaiiR, 292 uor, 42, 114, 116 uri, 298 yHmesi (U'Nvanieii), 74, 77 VHmoga, '94 yansa, or U'-Kerew^ Lake, 6, 7, 34, 74 yeiiiim, 46 yawa, 00 j bbo, 90 Sole, 207 bongo. 10, 82 ! gow4. River, 7, 19, 22 Id Cairo, 411, 412 8obat. 244 Koaseir, 387 m-Bedr, 277. 280 mbofl, 71, 376 mdurmaii, 244 msbanga, 280 range, 7 range Biver, 18 rgheaa, or Dideaa, 212 rSmo, 104 rtoale, 137, 186 a-Amen, sm TheboB abast, 417 amsjat, 306 ango River, 46 anom, or Fautentam, 105 anyatoU, 04 a-Seltak, or Arsinoij, 897 eluaium, 364, 421 Bay. 331 ^Ra, 413 omba, 9 eople of Farftn, «»# Copts entodactyle (Jebel-Fangeli), 282 etrifled forests, 821 barox, 428 hiloe, 378 hilsB, 66 hoBnieiana, 17 inyin, 46 ithom, 418 ort Said, 419 ort-j Santo Ides, ft rince Island, 9 yraintds of Qimh, 401 adesieh, 28S Agad, 138 agat, or Betaf; 41 agwili, or Saguleh, 187 Ahad, or Abu Ahn>, 49, 186, 137 aheita, 101, 210 ;Ninleli, 434 is-Benas, 282, 816 uI-Bir, 207 Dajan, 136 «1-Fil, 136. 248 JUMil-nimsah, 387 »1-Kbartuin, 244 Mohammed, 387 a vera, 81 Raya, 200 Reb River, 163 Red Sea, 28, 126, 138, 142 Kekhmara, 384 Rek, 106 Uelaba, 46 Ruligions of Africa, 28 AbyssiDiii, 166 Egypt, 353 Nubia, 293 Uganda, 86 U-Nyoro, 93 Reshid, or Rosetta, 420 Reta 18, 21, 341 Rio Grande, 8 Ripon Falls. 37 Rivani of Africa, fi Bo8. River, 46 liobabat, 297 Roda, 396 Bodi, 46 Koggeh, 186 or Roghieh, 211 Rokelle, Mount, 8 Bol, River, 45, 108 Town. 100 Rom, 148 Kora Azgedeh, 131 Tsallim, 132 Ro8@r6s or Rosaires, 241 Roselta, 426 Rosetia River, 860 Rotu (Reta). 18 Roviima, Wady, 7 Ruanda, 82 Rubaga. 76, 88 Rug^shi, 34 Kumbek, 109 Sa, 425 SHadieh. 414 Saati, 178 Sabderat, 260 SabuB, 306 8a-el-Hagar, 426 Bagaln, 206 Suharah, 5, 12, 16 Sahn, or Shoho, liSO Sahel, 131, 142. 147 Said. 313 8ais, 425 Saka. 212, 218 Sulkieh, 346 Samra, 174 Samreh, 174 St. Macarius. 827 St. Croix (Santa Croce, Heiligen- Kreuts), 106 St. Thomas, Samalmon, 186 Samanhud, 428 Shu, 421 Saiideg^, 90 Saoi-ta, 102 Sau-Tome, «m St. Thomas Suqqarah, 899 Saut. or Aasiut, 890 Sitwahili, 215 Sawrat. 297 ' Sawakin, 263 Sobeiinvtos, 423 f^eket, 174 Sclimoh, 301 Semayata (Adua), 134, 171 (Talba Waha), 136 Semneb, 320 Kenafeh, 176 Sendr, Province, 16, 20, 22, 141 Town, 241 Sen&ri, 228 Senegal, River, 8 Seneganibia, 30 Senhit (Smnahei't), 147 Town, 177 Senliuroa, 398 SenAsiya, 363, 364 Keraweh, 176 8ereh,112 Serhdd or Jarabiib, 353 Seas£, 36. 82 Setti-Daniiana, 424 Setit River, 60 Shuikieh, 150, 207 Shakka, 280 Shnkka, or Amba-Shakka, 184 Shangalla, or Shaiikalla, 119. 160, 222 Sharkieh Canal, 414 Shnfalu, 94, 121 Sheikh Abadeh, 806 Abdullah. 263 Abd-el-Kumah, 384 Shoka, or Sieka, 216 Shekka, or Shakka, 276, 280 Shellali, 374 Shelif River, 8 Shelota, Mount, 171 Shendi, 246 Shiluk, 16 18, no Shimfah Biver, 242 Shibin-el-Kaiiater, 416 el.K6m, 424 Shir (banks of the Nile), 102 (Zeriba region). 113 Shoa, or Shawa. 124, 162, 184 Shoho. 160, 164 Coimtry, 160 Shol da. Mount, 171 Shubrah, 413 Sbuknrieh, oi' Shukrieh. 236 Shumalieh^ 148 Shuli, 84. 08 Sidama. 200, 213 Sienulio, 226 Silsildh. 68, 376 Sinkat, 266, 266 Simen (Samen, Somen, Semien, or Semiene), 128, 134, 136 Simeyu, 77 Si^jeh, 241 Sinai. 316 Siut 391) Siwali Oasi*. 323, 324 Town, 394 Sittra, Lake, 323 Slave Coast, 26 Sobat River. 46, 1 16 Town. 122, 244 Socntra, 9 Soddo, 200 Sohag. 390 Sokota, 170 Soleb, 302 Somal, 23 Somali, 193 Somerset Nile, 37 Sona River, 60 Sotorba Mountains, 'J82 Speke Gulf, 77 Spina Mundi, 131 Snakin, nr Sawakin, 253 Soan, 376 Su(«oth. 418 Sudan, 12, 2i Sudanese, 20 SufE Canal, 363 Oulf of, 317 Isthmus of, 2, 336 Town of, 416 Suk Abu-Siu, 249 Sukunut, 77 Suro, 119 Syone, tee AssOan Syrtes (Great), 9 (Minor), 8 Tabi, Monnt, 227 Tubiban, 190 Tacosha, 206 'I'ada Rapid, 38 Tajurah, 236 Tagxla, 263 Mountains, 268 Tab, 46 Tahtali, 300 Talmo, Lake, 276 Taka, 249 Takkas^ River, 49, 131 TakrOr. or Takarir, 24, 229 Takufikiyah, 122 Takueh, 148 Talanta Pl«tea>i, 128 Tulba Waha Mounlains. 136, 167 Tkltal, 138, 174, 192 Tauiaiiiat, 63 , Tamanieh, 266 Tamiathis, 423 Tana, Wady, 7 Tana, or Tsaiia, Lake, 47, 48, 136 'I'linganyka, Lake, 6. 39 Tangurl River, 33, 37, 74, 80 Taiita, or Tt-nta, 169 Tantah, 426 Taiiis, 421 TaofH, 1£2 Taposiris, 436 Tarrangoleh. 104 Tawlud, IfcO Tegeleh, or Dogoteh, 263 Tegnlet. 200 Wat, 186 Tab, 377 Teirieh, 426 Telfia, 46 TelUMonf, 400 el-Amama, 396 el-Kebir, 406, 417 Eolzum, 416 el-Maskhata (Pithom), 418 el-Bastah, 417 el-Odameb, 426 el-Y«hud, 416 Tembien, 171 Tenareb, Mount, 316 Tenta, 169 Tentyris, u» Dendenth Teremo-Ghtrbo, 41 Teremithis. 426 Terrau«h, 327, 426 Towflk, Port, 416 'J ha-Mariam, 252 Tliebes, 379 This (Thinis), 388 Theku, 418 Thunder Island, 170 Tibesti, 6 Tigt«. 124, 184 tribe, 149, 162 TigriuiiB, 163 Tilfi, 46 Timbuoiu, 28 pup luir i M^ n w tm 496 Timsah, Lake, 2. 364, 369 Tig-Esat KiiU, 49 Tobbu, 277 Togoi, US Tokai, 131, 266, io6 Tomat, 249 Toiidv, 45 Tonj River. 46, 109 Tor, 316 Tora, Torra, or Torati, 280 Toria (dftr), 279 Trajan's Canal. 366 TrinkaUi, 265 THid Amba, 133 TsanH, ««« Tana T«ellan, 147 TuaregB, 292 Tub».u, 277 Tiiesha, 280 Tuiih. 106 Tulu-Amara, I'JO 1 1 Soghida^ 218 Wallol, 222 TnmHtRivHi-, 49, 160, JIG, 230 Tunis, 29, 76 Tunisia, 2 Tunjur, or Tunzer, 277 Turah, Mount, 318 Tnrks, 349 Tuta, $ee Wa-Tuta Tzade, or Tsad, Uke, 6, 8. 10. 271 Tzellari River, 136 UauA, 146, 292 U-Du (Uddu), 82 U-OHna, 89 U-Ganda, 36. 76, 76, 82, 86 Ugukanr, 45 UkiiI, 46 U-Kava, 89 U-Kerewe, tee Wymm Island, 78. 89 Uled-Abbao, 236 miagalla (Mabulagala), 88 Uma (d6r) 279 River, 18r. TJm-el-Ket' f (Bereniob), 316 U-Nyamezi, 74, 77 r-Nyoro, 87. 91 TJrigi, 81 U-Rima, 78 . ^ U-Sagara, 82 U-Savara. 88 U-Si>ga, 82, 87 U-Sui, 76 INDEX. Ussub-Ummadeh, 288 U-Vunia, 57 U-Zinza, 79 « Victoria, or Victoria Nyania,- Lake, 8, 7, 34, 74 Wabi River, 208 Wadai, 268 Wfldeh Rapid, 38 Wiidolii!, 99 Wudv-Aba-D(iin, 298 Allaki, 283, 286 Amur, 280 Azum, 274 Bareh, 277 Dum, 298 El- r h. 316 Hiilfa, 65, 288, SOS .lehenna. 288 Kab, 301 Magsvkl, 271 Melek, 267, 271, 283 Mokattain, 288 Natran, 426 Nuba, 281 Reyan, 61, 398 Sarras, 303 TAinil&t, 406 416 Wa-Ganda, 83 Wagara, 186 Wab, 46 Wab-el-Gharbieb. 322 Wa-Huma, 79, 83, 222 Waik. 46 Wa-Chopi, or She&blu, 94 WakkalH, or Okkela, 104 tTaj. 106 Wa-Kavirondo, 89 Wiikorajs, 16 Wa-Kuri, 89 Wa-Kwafl, 77, 147 Waldebba, Pronnce, 170 HnnntaiiiH, 186 Wali-dabba, 1 1 Waldia, 170 WaUega, 117 Wama, 77 'Wa-Nanda, 80 Wa.Nyatnbo, 81. 88 Wa.NyoK>. 84. 92 . Wanz^het, 164 Warabang6, 81 Waratta, 186 Wariro. 186 THE IBND. Woeas. 212 'Waahitis. 212 Wa-Sui, 79 W«-Soga. 83 Wa-Suthuma, 77 Wa-Tusi. 79 Wa-Tuta, 79 \Vi,t, 200 Wau. 112 Wa-Zinztt, 77 Webi, WeUe, River, 82 WeUi, 45 White Nile, ue Bnbr-eUAbiad Windermere, 81 Winsegur, 186 Wohni, 163 Wosho, Mount, 186 Woito, 147 ) Wobo, 212 Wold-Medineh, 242 el-Arab, 233 WoHo, 136, 199 Woreaia, 211 Yabo, 46 Yabus River, 49 Yal River, 116, 226 Yambo, or Ghimbo 117 Yangaro, Janjero, or Zi^jero, 213, 214 Yavash, or Kisbar River, 116, 226 Yejibbeli, 168 Yei River, 46. 104, 107 Yer, 46 Yerboia, 41 Zbbalat, 28S Zagasig, 417 Zambeai River, 37 Zamdber, 9. 74 Zaw'iet-el-Deir, 390 Zebul, 136, 143 Zephyrion, 427 Zeribn Region, 112 Zeila. 204 Zemerjit, 283 Zena-Markos, 210 Zittab, 423 Zingero, 214 Ziga-Wodiam, 210 Zigheb, 166 Zikuala, 186 Zogbawa, 261. 277 Zufla, 174, 181 Zn-ai, Lake, 188 ^i- ■ 'irii' ■■ ■ .■Litijiit>Hif'»»ie«*iiinH!M>M»*nn -^ as. 212 bitia, 212 Sui, 79 Soga, 88 Suthiima, 77 Tusi, 79 ■Tata, 79 t, 200 1. 112 •Zinztt, 77 l)i, Welle, River, 82 Hi, 45 ite Nile, Met Bnlir-eUAbiad idermere, 81 taegur, 186 hni, 163 sho, Mount, 186 ito, 147 ( bo, 212 Id-Medineb, 242 el-Arab, 233 no, 136. 199 reaia, 211 to, 45 IU8 River, 49 River, 116, 226 nbo, or Ghimbo 117 tgaro, Janjero, or Zi^jero, 213, 14 raah, or Kiahar River, 116, 226 tbbeh, 168 Rivw, 46. 104, 107 ,46 i)oia, 41 lalat, 283 ;a«ig, 417 (ibeai Uiver, 37 isiber, 9, 74 r'iet-el-Deir, 390 ul, 136, 143 ihyrion, 427 ibn Region, 112 la. 204 nerjit, 283 iK-Marko8,'210 tab, 423 gem, 214 a-Wodiam, 310 ;beb, 166 uala, 186 thaw$^, 261. 277 Ha, 174, 181 at. Lake, 188 .S*.. iiiMiii i,ip III iiiinnf.iw'ii"f".i 1 twi i« I III iniiiiatMw ■■■M^