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34 THE NILE TRIBUTARIES OF ABYSSINIA AND THE
SWORD HUNTERS OF THE HAMRAN ARABS
BY SIR SAMUEL W. BAKER, M.A., F.R.G.S.
I DEDICATE THIS BOOK,
WITH SPECIAL PERMISSION,
TO HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS ALBERT EDWARD,
PRINCE OF WALES,
AS THE FIRST OF
ENGLAND'S ROYAL RACE
WHO HAS SAILED UPON THE WATERS OF
THE NILE;
THE LAKE SOURCES OF WHICH MIGHTY RIVER ARE HONOURED
BY THE NAMES OF
HIS AUGUST PARENTS.
PREFACE.
THE work entitled "The Albert N'yanza Great Basin of the Nile,"
published in 1866, has given an account of the equatorial lake
system from which the Egyptian river derives its source. It has
been determined by the joint explorations of Speke, Grant, and
myself, that the rainfall of the equatorial districts supplies
two vast lakes, the Victoria and the Albert, of sufficient volume
to support the Nile throughout its entire course of thirty
degrees of latitude. Thus the parent stream, fed by never-failing
reservoirs, supplied by the ten months' rainfall of the equator,
rolls steadily on its way through arid sands and burning deserts
until it reaches the Delta of Lower Egypt.
It would at first sight appear that the discovery of the lake
sources of the Nile had completely solved the mystery of ages,
and that the fertility of Egypt depended upon the rainfall of the
equator concentrated in the lakes Victoria and Albert; but the
exploration of the Nile tributaries of Abyssinia divides the Nile
system into two proportions, and unravels the entire mystery of
the river, by assigning to each its due share in ministering to
the prosperity of Egypt.
The lake sources of Central Africa support the life of Egypt, by
supplying a stream, throughout all seasons, that has sufficient
volume to support the exhaustion of evaporation and absorption;
but this stream, if unaided, could never overflow its banks, and
Egypt, thus deprived of the annual inundation, would simply
exist, and cultivation would be confined to the close vicinity of
the river.
The inundation, which by its annual deposit of mud has actually
created the Delta of Lower Egypt, upon the overflow of which the
fertility of Egypt depends, has an origin entirely separate from
the lake-sources of Central Africa, and the supply of water is
derived exclusively from Abyssinia.
The two grand affluents of Abyssinia are, the Blue Nile and the
Atbara, which join the main stream respectively in N. lat. 15
degrees 30 minutes and 17 degrees 37 minutes. These rivers,
although streams of extreme grandeur during the period of the
Abyssinian rains, from the middle of June until September, are
reduced during the dry months to utter insignificance; the Blue
Nile becoming so shallow as to be unnavigable, and the Atbara
perfectly dry. At that time the water supply of Abyssinia having
ceased, Egypt depends solely upon the equatorial lakes and the
affluents of the White Nile, until the rainy season shall again
have flooded the two great Abyssinian arteries. That flood occurs
suddenly about the 20th of June, and the grand rush of water
pouring down the Blue Nile and the Atbara into the parent
channel, inundates Lower Egypt, and is the cause of its extreme
fertility.
Not only is the inundation the effect of the Abyssinian rains,
but the deposit of mud that has formed the Delta, and which is
annually precipitated by the rising waters, is also due to the
Abyssinian streams, more especially to the river Atbara, which,
known as the Bahr el Aswat (Black River), carries a larger
proportion of soil than any other tributary of the Nile;
therefore, to the Atbara, above all other rivers, must the wealth
and fertility of Egypt be attributed.
It may thus be stated: The equatorial lakes FEED Egypt; but the
Abyssinian rivers CAUSE THE INUNDATION.
This being a concise summary of the Nile system, I shall describe
twelve months' exploration, during which I examined every
individual river that is tributary to the Nile from Abyssinia,
including the Atbara, Settite, Royan, Salaam, Angrab, Rahad,
Dinder, and the Blue Nile. The interest attached to these
portions of Africa differs entirely from that of the White Nile
regions, as the whole of Upper Egypt and Abyssinia is capable of
development, and is inhabited by races either Mohammedan or
Christian; while Central Africa is peopled by a hopeless race of
savages, for whom there is no prospect of civilization.
The exploration of the Nile tributaries of Abyssinia occupied the
first twelve months of my journey towards the Nile sources.
During this time, I had the opportunity of learning Arabic and of
studying the character of the people; both necessary
acquirements, which led to my ultimate success in reaching the
"Albert N'yanza." As the readers of the work of that title are
aware, I was accompanied throughout the entire journey by my
wife, who, with extraordinary hardihood and devotion, shared
every difficulty with which African travel is beset.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
ABOVE THE CATARACT.
Sterility--Arrival at Korosko--Twenty-six Days from Cairo--The
Nubian Desert--Nature's Pyramids--Volcanic Bombs--The Stony Sea--
The Camel's Grave--The Crows of Moorahd--A delicious
Draught--Rocks of the Desert--The perished Regiment--Arrival at
the Nile--Distance from Korosko--Gazelles of the Desert--Dryness
of the Atmosphere--Arrival at Berber--Halleem Effendi's
Garden--Halleem gives Advice--The Nile rising--Visit of the
Ladies--The Pillars of Sand--The Governor's Friendship--Save me
from my Friends.
CHAPTER II.
The Cairo Dragoman Mahomet--Mahomet forsakes his Pistols--The
Route to the Atbara--The Dry Bed of the River--The Dome
Palm--Preparation of the Fruit--Pools of the Atbara--Collection
of Birds--Charms of the Desert--Suffering of Men and
Beasts--Collodabad--Hippopotamus kills the Arab--Daring Feat of
the Fish-Eagle--Hippopotamus-shooting--Hippopotami
bagged--Delight of the Arabs--Fishing--Catch a Tartar--Lose my
Turtle Soup--Gazelle-shooting--The Speed of the Gazelle--
Preparation of Water-skins--Tanning the Hides--Shoot a
Crocodile--The River comes down--The mighty Stream of the
Atbara--Change in the Season.
CHAPTER III.
WILD ASSES OF THE DESERT.
My First and Last--Appetite for raw Meat--The Bishareen Arabs--
Gozerajup--The First Rain--Limits of the Desert--The Hadendowa
Arabs--The Wells of Soojalup--Antelopes--Antelope Stalking--Arab
Migrations--The Arab's Prayer--The Barren Women--Difficulty in
fording the River Gash--Arrive at Cassala--Hospitality of the
Greek Merchant.
CHAPTER IV.
ROUTE FROM CASSALA TO SOUAKIM.
Facilities of the Port of Souakim--Fortifications of
Cassala--Conquest of Nubia--Cruel Taxation--Extreme Cheapness of
Corn--Cultivation of Cereals--Arab Bread--Military Position of
Cassala--The Base--Prepare to start from Cassala--Mahomet's
Family Tree--Mahomet meets Relations--We cross the
Gash--Stalking the Ariel--Bagged the Game--Descent of
Vultures--Change of Scenery--The Source of the Delta--The Parent
of Egypt.
CHAPTER V.
THE STORM.
Cotton Farm of Malem Georgis--Ferocious Crocodiles--Shoot a
Monster--The Public Enemy--Resistance of a Crocodile's
Scales--Discover Gold--Heavy Action of the Camel--El Baggar
selects a Hygeen--The Easy-goer, suitable for a Lady--Hooked
Thorns of the Mimosa--We charge a Kittar Bush--The Scorpion's
Sting--Sudden Deluge--A Regiment of Scorpions--Valley of the
Atbara--The Migration of Camels--A Milk Diet--The Arab
Exodus--The Desert Patriarch.
CHAPTER VI.
SHEIK ACHMET ABOU SINN.
The Arab Welcome--Abou Sinn's Advice--Arab Tribes of Nubia--A
Hint to Octogenarians--The Arab Pomade--The Arab Lady's
Perfumery--The fatal Mixture--The Coiffure of the World--The Arab
Woman's Head-dress--"The Dust became Lice through all Egypt"--The
Arab Charms--The Rahat or Arab Kilt--Arab Weddings--No Divorce
Court--Anointing with Oil--Nomadic Habits of the
Arabs--Unchanging Customs of the Arabs--The Hand of God--Religion
of the Arabs.
CHAPTER VII.
THE DEPARTURE.
First-class Hygeens--Travelling Arrangements--The Evening
Bivouac--The Junction of the Settite River--Sheik Atalan Wat
Said--Abyssinian Frontier--Ismael Pasha burnt alive--Mek
Nimmur--The Enemy of Egypt--Arrival at Sofi--The
Reception--Position of Sofi--Florian, the German Settler--The
Cattle Fly--Peculiarities of the Seasons--The New Camp--I become
a Householder--Arrangement of our Establishment--My "Baby"--An
African Elysium--No Pipe!--The Elements at Work.
CHAPTER VIII.
THE PLAGUES OF EGYPT.
Go into Half Mourning--"Child of the Fever"--The Arab M.D.--Arab
Fondness for Relics--The Pest Spots of the World--The Dangers of
Holy Shrines--Arrival of the Holy Body--The Faky's Grave--Arab
Doctoring--Delights of Arab Surgery--The Pig and the
Koran--Sword Hunters of the Hamran Arabs--The Arab Shields--Hints
for carrying the Sword--Keenness of the Edge--Arab
Swordsmanship--The Aggageers--Elephant-hunting with the
Sword--Arab disabled by his own Sword--Maria Theresa--Great
Failure--The Baboons and the Crocodile--The drowned
Elephant--Game on the East Bank--Capabilities of the
Soil--Tanning of Leather--Native Baskets and Matting--Bacheet is
too attentive--"Oh Bacheet! you Ignoramus!"--Ferocity of the
Seroot Fly--Cross the Atbara--The Impromptu Raft--Stalking
Giraffes--Within Range--The First Rush of the Herd--The Retreat
of the Giraffes--Death of the Giraffes--Passage of the River--
The Giraffe Sentry--A difficult Stalk--The Seroot Fly takes
possession--Giraffe Steaks--A Hunt for the Tetel--Floating Meat
across a River--Buoy for Men and Cargo--Scare the
Crocodiles--The Lions devour the Giraffe--Arab Music--Arrange to
cross the River.
CHAPTER IX.
FORM A RAFT WITH THE SPONGING BATH.
The Impromptu Ferry--Achmet is tempted by Satan--Mahomet's
Relative absconds--End of the Rainy Season--The Seroot Fly
disappears--The "Till"--Preparations for Fishing--"That was a
Monster!"--The "Bayard"--Masara the Slave--Cross the Peninsula to
Settite--Jungle Cooking--A miserable Night--Shoot badly--Fishing
in the Atbara--A good Run--Another Monster--Bacheet lands
him--The Baboons visit us--The Coor--Wild Vegetables--Death of
Atalan Wat Said--Catch a Baggar--Fish-salting--The Arbour.
CHAPTER X.
A FEW NOTES AT EHETILLA.
Fire the Valley--Arrival of Birds--Seized by a
Crocodile--Audacity of the Buzzard--The Abomination of
Thorns--Boa Constrictor--The Baboons hunt for Berries--Masses of
small Birds--Cunning of the Crocodile--Method of seizing its
Prey--Horse-dealing--Arab Saddles and Bits--Arrive at Sherif el
Ibrahim--Arrival at the Settite--Recall of Mahomet--Sheik Achmet
Wat el Negur--Mansfield Parkyns--Advantages of a "Sweet Name"--
Elephants destroy the Crops--An Invitation to shoot--The Hippo
challenges Bacheet--A good Shot--A Rush at the Carcase--Elephants
at Night--Kill an Elephant.
CHAPTER XI.
THE FORD.
Girls carried away by the Rapids--An amphibious Arab Girl--Search
for the drowned Girl--The Corpse recovered--The Sheik lays down
the Law--"The Fact is simply impossible"--The Sheik's Idea of
Matrimony--The Duties of his Four Wives--The Maimed, the Halt,
and the Blind--The Arab Fakeers or Priests--"All the Same with a
little Difference"--The Cure for Frendeet--Arrival at
Katariff--The Market Day--Scenes at the Fair--Custom of
scarifying the Cheeks--The Galla Slave--Purchase her Freedom
--Singular Misunderstanding--Mahomet's Explanation--Mek Nimmur
invades the Frontier--Mek Nimmur's Tactics--Insecurity of the
Country--Mek Nimmur sends me his Compliments--Roder Sheriff's
withered Arm--The Aggageers--Mixture for Bullets--We make
Arrowroot--Florian's Hunter--Arrive at Geera--Follow a Herd of
Elephants--Track up the Elephants--A tremendous Crash--A
critical Position--The Forehead Shot--The Half-pound Explosive
Shell--Recover my old wounded Elephant--Fraternize with the
Sword Hunters.
CHAPTER XII.
OLD NEPTUNE JOINS THE PARTY.
The Arab Centaurs--Wild Arab Horsemanship--Discipline of the
Gun-bearers--Off goes the Gun, and its Master!--Ombrega (Mother
of the Thorn)--Leopard Springs into the Camp--The Dog carried
off--The Bull Elephant--The Forehead Shot fails--The Mountain
Chain of Abyssinia--A Hunt after a Herd of Baboons--The
Prisoners--A Course after a Tetel--The Cry of Buffaloes--We hunt
and capture--The Baboons take leave--The Valley of the
Settite--The Bull Buffalo--The Island Camp--Mahomet hears the
Lions--Tales of the Base.
CHAPTER XIII.
THE LIONS FIND THE BUFFALO.
We seek an Introduction--The Start of the Sword Hunters--The Bull
Elephant--The "Baby" screams at him--The Fight, Sword in
Hand--Abou Do's Blade tastes Blood--We find the Herd--Jali leads
the Party--The Forehead Shot fairly proved--The Charge of the
Phalanx--My "Baby" kicks viciously--Abou Do slashes the
Sinew--The Boar wounds Richarn--Old Moosa, the Sorcerer--Neptune
and his Trident--The Beauty of the Settite--Borders of the
River--The Hippopotamus Hunter--The Hippo is harpooned--A Cheer
for Old Neptune--Death of the Hippopotamus--Character of
Hippopotami--Habits of the Hippopotamus--Its Activity.
CHAPTER XIV.
A FOREBODING OF EVIL.
Jali's Thigh is broken--Abou Do saves Jali--Extraordinary
Dexterity--Jungle Surgery--We lose our best Man--My Tokrooris
determine to desert--A little Diplomacy is required--The Sick are
dosed--"Embrace him!" cried old Moosa--We become staunch
Friends--Abou Do's Weaknesses--The Baobab--The Crop of Gum
Arabic--The Rhinoceros--Now for a "Tally Ho!"--The Hunt--Close to
their Tails--"A Horse! a Horse! my Kingdom for a Horse!"--The
last Moment--Difficulty of Hunting--Power of Scent--Horns of the
Rhinoceros--Peculiarity of the Rhinoceros--Rhinoceros Snare--
Barrake poisons herself--Attractive Food for Elephants--Florian
killed by a Lion--Gloomy Prediction.
CHAPTER XV.
ANTELOPES ON THE SETTITE.
The Camp at Delladila--Trionis Nilotica--Fish linked to
Reptiles--Scenes on the River's Margin--The Nellut (A.
Strepsiceros)--Swimming Rivers with a Horse--The Lion--The Lion
Hunt--The Escape--The Bull Buffalo--Death of the Bull--The
Arabs' Tit-bit--The Arab Plan for making Fire--The Mehedehet
Antelope--Sauve qui peut!--Nearly caught--Fire clears the
Country--Discretion the better Part of Valour--The Camp in
Danger--Nearly burnt out--Crocodile harpooning--The ugly little
Statue--Harpooning the Hippopotamus--The Harpoon fixed--The Hippo
determines to fight--The Lances are blunted--Hor
Mehetape--Geological Features--Unpleasant Report of the Spies.
CHAPTER XVI.
ABOU DO IS GREEDY.
Departure of the Aggageers--Game returning from the River--A Bull
Rhinoceros--We stalk the Rhinoceros--The Death--The Aggageers
poach upon my Manor--Their Prize dies--Taher Noor faces the
Lion--We start fresh Game--A curious Shot--Bait for the
Lions--Highly exciting--My Tokrooris don't like the Lion--The
dying Lioness--Brought into Camp--Difficulty in tracking the
Lions--The Lion visits our Camp--Vis a vis with a Lion--A
Surprise--Tetel faces the wounded Lion--Wonderful Courage of the
Horse--Lions' Claws worn as a Charm--We commence Soap-boiling--
Savon a la Bete feroce--We bury poor Barrake.
CHAPTER XVII.
WE REACH THE ROYAN.
Hor Mai Gubba--The Francolin Partridge--We watch for Game--Out
with the Aggageers--The Banks of the Royan--We find a Bull
Elephant--Helter- skelter--The Elephant at Bay--Roder with the
withered Arm--The Sword wins the Day--The nimble Base dine
cheaply--The great Whirlpool--The Royan Junction with the
Settite--A Bull Rhinoceros--Bacheet has to run--Visit to Mek
Nimmur--Our Arabs decline to proceed--Obliged to threaten the
Camels--The Troop on a Foray--Narrow Escape--The Rifle bursts--We
march from the Settite--Interesting Route--Mineral Wealth of
Abyssinia--Present to Mek Nimmur--The Abyssinian
Minstrel--Richard Coeur de Lion--I part with my dear Maria
Theresa--The Ghost of the departed Fiddler--The "Lay of the Last
Minstrel"--My Introduction to Mek Nimmur--The Reception--The
poisonous Stream--Unfortunate Contretemps--Nimmur behaves like a
Gentleman--Pharaoh's lean Kine.
CHAPTER XVIII.
A CAMEL FALLS, AND DIES.
Arabs consume the Raw Flesh--Arrival at the Bahr
Salaam--Character of the Torrents--The Junction of the
Angrab--Good Sport--Four lucky Hits--A Fall over a Cliff--We
save the Camel--Narrow Escape--The Hyaena enters the
Tent--Hippotragus Bakerii--The Base of the Abyssinian Alps--
Delightful Country--Follow a Herd of Elephants--Aggahr takes the
Lead--Fall at the Feet of Elephants--Benighted on our Return to
Camp--"All's well that ends well".
CHAPTER XIX.
SEND A PARTY TO RECONNOITRE.
Ahead of the Camels--The Maarif--View from the Peak--The
Rhinoceros attacks the Horse--The Bullet saves him--Arrival of
the Horses--The Rhinoceros Hunt--Ridden to bay--Arrival of Birds
of Prey--Habits of Vultures--The Marabou Stork--Sight, not Scent,
directs the Vulture--Abou Seen--"Last but not least"--Route to
Nahoot Guddabi--Arrive at the Atbara--Last View of the
Atbara--The Atbara Exploration completed.
CHAPTER XX.
ARRIVAL AT METEMMA, OR GALLABAT.
Poisonous Water--The Trade of Abyssinia--We encounter
Missionaries--The theological Blacksmith--The Missionaries'
Medicine-Chest--Jemma, Sheik of the Tokrooris--The Egyptians'
attack upon Gallabat--Settlement of the Tokrooris--Industry of
the Tokrooris--Weapons, Type, and Character--The Colonization by
Tokrooris--Honey Wine of Abyssinia--All drunk last
Night--Distance from an Act of Parliament--We leave Gallabat--A
Row with the Tokrooris--I settle the Tokroori Champion--A real
flat-nosed African Nigger--Death of Aggahr and Gazelle--Forced
March to the Rahad--The River Rahad.
CHAPTER XXI.
FERTILITY OF THE COUNTRY ON THE BANKS OF THE RAHAD.
Journey along the Rahad--Rich Country--We cross over to the
Dinder--Ferocity of Crocodiles in that River--Character of the
Dinder--Activity of the African Elephant--Distinction of
Species--Peculiarity of Form--African and Indian
Elephants--Destruction of Forests--Elephant's Foot a
Luxury--Preservation of Flesh and Fat for the March--Preparation
of Bread for a Journey--The Bos Caffer--The most formidable
Animals--Rifles for wild Countries--Sundry Hints--Bullets for
large Game--Antelopes of Central Africa and Abyssinia.
CHAPTER XXII.
WE LEAVE THE DINDER.
Curious Hunting Party--Character of Abyssinian Rivers--Borassus
AEthiopicus--Rufaar and the Arab Sheik--The Blue Nile--The very
gentlemanly Faky--Regularly "sold"--Arrival at Khartoum--The
British Lion--The Zoological Collection--The Ostriches invite
themselves to Tea--I intercede for Mek Nimmur--King Theodore's
Ultimatum--Climate of the Soudan--The Sageer or
Water-wheel--Uncontrolled Action of the Nile--Suggestions for the
Irrigation of Egypt--Why should not Science create a Delta?--A
Series of Weirs upon the Nile--The Benefits to Egypt and to
Civilization--Ancient Works of Irrigation in Ceylon--Industrious
Population of Egypt--Capabilities for producing Cotton--The Great
Sahara--The Race of Life--Prepare to discover the White Nile
Source.
THE NILE TRIBUTARIES OF ABYSSINIA, AND THE
SWORD HUNTERS OF THE HAMRAN ARABS.
CHAPTER I.
ABOVE THE CATARACT.
WITHOUT troubling the public with a description of that portion
of the Nile to the north of the first cataract, or with a
detailed account of the Egyptian ruins, that have been visited by
a thousand tourists, I will commence by a few extracts from my
journal, written at the close of the boat voyage from Cairo :--
"May 8, 1861.--No air. The thermometer 104 degrees Fahr.; a
stifling heat. Becalmed, we have been lying the entire day below
the ruins of Philae. These are the most imposing monuments of the
Nile, owing to their peculiar situation upon a rocky island that
commands the passage of the river above the cataract. The banks
of the stream are here hemmed in by ranges of hills from 100 to
250 feet high; these are entirely destitute of soil, being
composed of enormous masses of red granite, piled block upon
block, the rude masonry of Nature that has walled in the river.
The hollows between the hills are choked with a yellow sand,
which, drifted by the wind, has, in many instances, completely
filled the narrow valleys. Upon either side of the Nile are
vestiges of ancient forts. The land appears as though it bore the
curse of Heaven; misery, barrenness, and the heat of a furnace
are its features. The glowing rocks, devoid of a trace of
vegetation, reflect the sun with an intensity that must be felt
to be understood. The miserable people who dwell in villages upon
the river's banks snatch every sandbank from the retiring stream,
and immediately plant their scanty garden with melons, gourds,
lentils, &c. this being their only resource for cultivation. Not
an inch of available soil is lost; but day by day, as the river
decreases, fresh rows of vegetables are sown upon the
newly-acquired land. At Assouan, the sandbanks are purely sand
brought down by the cataracts, therefore soil must be added to
enable the people to cultivate. They dig earth from the ruins of
the ancient town; this they boat across the river and spread upon
the sandbank, by which excessive labour they secure sufficient
mould to support their crops.
In the vicinity of Philae the very barrenness of the scenery
possesses a charm. The iron-like sterility of the granite rocks,
naked except in spots where the wind has sheeted them with sand;
the groves of palms springing unexpectedly into view in this
desert wilderness, as a sudden bend of the river discovers a
village; the ever blue and never clouded sky above, and, the only
blessing of this blighted land, the Nile, silently flowing
between its stern walls of rocks towards the distant land of
Lower Egypt, form a total that produces a scene to be met with
nowhere but upon the Nile. In this miserable spot the unfortunate
inhabitants are taxed equally with those of the richer
districts--about fivepence annually for each date palm.
"May 9.--A good breeze, but tremendous heat. Although the floor
and the curtains of the cabin are continually wetted, and the
Venetian blinds are closed, the thermometer, at 4 P.M., stood at
105 degrees in the shade; and upon deck, 137 degrees in the sun.
This day we passed the ruins of several small temples. The
country is generally rocky, with intervals of ten or twelve miles
of desert plains.
"May 10.--Fine breeze, the boat sailing well. Passed several
small temples. The henna grows in considerable quantities on the
left bank of the river. The leaf resembles that of the myrtle;
the blossom has a powerful fragrance; it grows like a feather,
about eighteen inches long, forming a cluster of small yellow
flowers. The day pleasantly cool; thermometer, 95 degrees.
"May 11.--At 5 A.M. we arrived at Korosko; lat. 22 degrees 50
minutes N.; the halting-place for all vessels from Lower Egypt
with merchandise for the Soudan."
At this wretched spot the Nile is dreary beyond description, as
a vast desert, unenlivened by cultivation, forms its borders,
through which the melancholy river rolls towards Lower Egypt in
the cloudless glare of a tropical sun. From whence came this
extraordinary stream that could flow through these burning sandy
deserts, unaided by tributary channels? That was the mysterious
question as we stepped upon the shore now, to commence our land
journey in search of the distant sources. We climbed the steep
sandy bank, and sat down beneath a solitary sycamore.
We had been twenty-six days sailing from Cairo to this point. The
boat returned, and left us on the east bank of the Nile, with the
great Nubian desert before us.
Korosko is not rich in supplies. A few miserable Arab huts, with
the usual fringe of dusty date palms, compose the village; the
muddy river is the frontier on the west, the burning desert on
the east. Thus hemmed in, Korosko is a narrow strip of a few
yards' width on the margin of the Nile, with only one redeeming
feature in its wretchedness--the green shade of the old sycamore
beneath which we sat.
I had a firman from the Viceroy, a cook, and a dragoman. Thus my
impedimenta were not numerous. The firman was an order to all
Egyptian officials for assistance; the cook was dirty and
incapable; and the interpreter was nearly ignorant of English,
although a professed polyglot. With this small beginning, Africa
was before me, and thus I commenced the search for the Nile
sources. Absurd as this may appear, it was a correct
commencement. Ignorant of Arabic, I could not have commanded a
large party, who would have been at the mercy of the interpreter
or dragoman; thus, the first qualification necessary to success
was a knowledge of the language.
After a delay of some days, I obtained sixteen camels from the
sheik. I had taken the precaution to provide water-barrels, in
addition to the usual goat-skins; and, with a trustworthy guide,
we quitted Korosko on the 16th May, 1861, and launched into the
desert.
The route from Korosko across the Nubian desert cuts off the
chord of an arc made by the great westerly bend of the Nile. This
chord is about 230 miles in length. Throughout this barren desert
there is no water, except at the half-way station, Moorahd (from
moorra, bitter); this, although salt and bitter, is relished by
camels. During the hot season in which we unfortunately
travelled, the heat was intense, the thermometer ranging from 106
degrees to 114 degrees Fahr. in the shade. The parching blast of
the simoom was of such exhausting power, that the water rapidly
evaporated from the closed water-skins. It was, therefore,
necessary to save the supply by a forced march of seven days, in
which period we were to accomplish the distance, and to reach
Abou Hammed, on the southern bend of the welcome Nile.
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