The Nile tributaries of Abyssinia, and the sword hunters of the Hamran arabs, Sir Samuel White Baker [open ebook TXT] 📗

side and shot some guinea-fowl.

The Settite is the river par excellence, as it is the principal stream of Abyssinia, in which country it bears the name of "Tacazzy." Above the junction, the Atbara does not exceed two hundred yards in width. Both rivers have scooped out deep and broad valleys throughout their course; this fact confirmed my first impression of the supply of soil having been brought down by the Atbara to the Nile. The country on the opposite or eastern bank of the Atbara is contested ground; in reality it forms the western frontier of Abyssinia, of which the Atbara river is the boundary, but since the annexation of the Nubian provinces to Egypt there has been no safety for life or property upon the line of frontier; thus a large tract of country actually forming a portion of Abyssinia is uninhabited.

Upon my return to the camp, I was informed by the Sheik Wat Said that a detachment of troops was stationed at Tomat expressly to protect the Egyptian frontier from the raids of Mek Nimmur, who was in the habit of crossing the Atbara and pillaging the Arab villages during the dry season, when the river was fordable. This Mek Nimmur was a son of the celebrated Mek Nimmur, the chief of Shendy, a district upon the west bank of the Nile between Berber and Khartoum. When the Egyptian forces, under the command of Ismael Pasha, the son of the Viceroy Mehemet Ali Pasha, arrived at Shendy, at the time of the conquest of Nubia, he called the great Sheik Mek (from Melek, signifying king) Nimmur before him, and demanded the following supplies for his army, as tribute for the Pasha:--1,000 young girls as slaves; 1,000 oxen; and of camels, goats, sheep, each 1,000; also camel-loads of corn and straw each 1,000, with a variety of other demands expressed by the same figure. It is said that Mek Nimmur replied to these demands with much courtesy, "Your arithmetic exhibits a charming simplicity, as the only figure appears to be 1,000." In a short time the supplies began to arrive, strings of camels, laden with corn, assembled at Shendy in the Egyptian camp; cattle, goats, sheep, came in from all sides; fodder for the Egyptian cavalry, to the amount of 1,000 camel-loads, was brought to head-quarters, and piled in a huge wall that encircled the tent of the General Ismael Pasha. In the dead of night, while he slept, the crackling of fire was heard, and flames burst out upon all sides of the dry and combustible fodder; the Arabs had fired the straw in all directions, and a roar of flame in a fatal ring surrounded the Pasha's tent, which caught the fire. There was no escape! In the confusion, the Arabs fell upon the troops, and massacred a considerable number. After this success, Mek Nimmur succeeded in retiring with his people and herds to Sofi, on the Atbara, to which place we were bound; this was about twelve miles from Tomat. The body of Ismael Pasha was found beneath those of some of his women, all of whom that were within the inclosure having perished.

After this calamity the Egyptians recovered Shendy, and in revenge they collected a number of the inhabitants of all ages and both sexes. These were penned together like cattle in a zareeba or kraal, and were surrounded with dhurra-straw, which was fired in a similar manner to that which destroyed the Pasha. Thus were these unfortunate creatures destroyed en masse, while the remaining portion of the population fled to the new settlement of their chief at Sofi.

Within the last few years preceding my arrival, the Egyptians had attacked and utterly destroyed the old town of Sofi. Mek Nimmur had retired across the Atbara, and had taken refuge in Abyssinia, where he had been welcomed by the king of that country as the enemy of the Turks, and had been presented with a considerable territory at the western base of the high mountain range. When I arrived on the Atbara in 1861, the original Mek Nimnmur was dead, and his son, who also was called Mek Nimmur, reigned in his stead. "Nimmur" signifies in Arabic "leopard:" thus "Mek Nimmur" is the "Leopard King."

This man was constantly at war with the Egyptians, and such Arabs who were friendly to Egypt. His principal head-quarters were about seventy miles from Tomat, at a village named Mai Gubba, from which country he made successful razzias upon the Egyptian territory, which compelled a vigilant look-out during the dry season. During the rains there was no danger, as the river was immensely deep, and impassable from the total absence of boats.

The uninhabited country exactly opposite Tomat was said to abound with large game, such as elephants, giraffes, &c. as there were no enemies to disturb them.

At break of day, 29th July, the grandson of Abou Sinn, Sheik Ali, who had been our guide, paid us his parting visit, and returned with his people, while at the same time Atalan Wat Said arrived with a large retinue of his own Arabs and Egyptian soldiers to escort us to Sofi. Two splendid hygeens were already saddled for us, one of which was specially intended for my wife; this was the most thorough-bred looking animal I have ever seen; both were milk-white, but there was a delicacy in the latter that was unequalled. This was rather small, and although the ribs were so well covered that the animal appeared rather fleshy, it was in the hardiest condition, and was shaped in the depth of brisket and width of loins like a greyhound; the legs were remarkably fine, and as clean as ivory. The Sheik Atalan was charmed at our admiration of his much-prized hygeen, and to prove its speed and easy action we were no sooner mounted than he led the way at about ten miles an hour, down the steep slopes, across the rough watercourses, and up the hill-sides, assuring my wife that she might sip a cup of coffee on the back of the animal she rode, without spilling a drop: although an exaggeration, this is the usual figure of speech by which an Arab describes the easy action of a first-rate hygeen. It was a beautiful sight to watch the extraordinary ease with which the hygeen glided along over the numerous inequalities of the ground without the slightest discomfort to the rider; the numerous escort became a long and irregular line of stragglers, until at length they were lost in the distance, with the exception of three or four, who, well mounted, were proud of keeping their position. Emerging from the uneven valley of the Atbara, we arrived upon the high and level table land above; here the speed increased, and in the exhilaration of the pace in the cool morning air, with all nature glowing in the fresh green of a Nubian spring, we only regretted the shortness of the journey to Sofi, which we reached before the heat of the day had commenced. We were met by the sheik of the village, and by a German who had been a resident of Sofi for some years; he was delighted to see Europeans, especially those who were conversant with his own language, and he very politely insisted that we should dismount at his house. Accordingly our camels knelt at the door of a little circular stone building about twelve feet in diameter, with a roof thatched according to Arab fashion. This dwelling was the model of an Arab hut, but the walls were of masonry instead of mud and sticks, and two small windows formed an innovation upon the Arab style, which had much astonished the natives, who are contented with the light afforded by the doorway.

We were shortly sitting in the only stone building in the country, among a crowd of Arabs, who, according to their annoying custom, had thronged to the hut upon our arrival, and not only had filled the room, but were sitting in a mob at the doorway, while masses of mop-like heads were peering over the shoulders of the front rank, excluding both light and air; even the windows were blocked with highly frizzled heads, while all were talking at the same time.

Coffee having been handed to the principal people while our tents were being pitched outside the village, we at length silenced the crowd; our new acquaintance explained in Arabic the object of our arrival, and our intention of passing the rainy season at Sofi, and of exploring the various rivers of Abyssinia at the earliest opportunity. Atalan Wat Said promised every assistance when the time should arrive; he described the country as abounding with large game of all kinds, and he agreed to furnish me with guides and hunters at the commencement of the hunting season; in the meantime he ordered the sheik of the village, Hassan bel Kader, to pay us every attention.

After the departure of Atalan and his people, and the usual yelling of the women, we had time to examine Sofi, and accompanied by the German, Florian, we strolled through the village. At this position the slope of the valley towards the river was exceedingly gradual upon the west bank, until within a hundred and fifty yards of the Atbara, when the ground rapidly fell, and terminated in an abrupt cliff of white sandstone.

The miserable little village of modern Sofi comprised about thirty straw huts, but the situation was worthy of a more important settlement. A plateau of hard sandy soil of about twenty acres was bordered upon either side by two deep ravines that formed a natural protection, while below the steep cliff, within two hundred paces in front of the village, flowed the river Atbara; for mounted men there was only one approach, that which we had taken from the main land. There could not have been a more inviting spot adopted for a resting-place during the rains. Although the soil was thoroughly denuded of loam, and nothing remained but the original substratum of sandstone and pebbles, the grass was at this season about three inches high throughout the entire valley of the Atbara, the trees were in full leaf, and the vivid green, contrasting with the snow-white sandstone rocks, produced the effect of an ornamental park. My tents were pitched upon a level piece of ground, outside the village, about a hundred paces from the river, where the grass had been so closely nibbled by the goats that it formed a natural lawn, and was perfection for a camp; drains were dug around the tent walls, and everything was arranged for a permanency. I agreed with the sheik for the erection of a comfortabie hut for ourselves, a kitchen adjoining, and a hut for the servants, as the heavy storms were too severe for a life under canvas; in the meantime we sat in our tent, and had a quiet chat with Florian, the German.

He was a sallow, sickly-looking man, who with a large bony frame had been reduced from constant hard work and frequent sickness to little but skin and sinew; he was a mason, who had left Germany with the Austrian Mission to Khartoum, but finding the work too laborious in such a climate, he and a friend, who was a carpenter, had declared for independence, and they had left the Mission.

They were both enterprising fellows, and sportsmen; therefore they had purchased rifles and ammunition, and had commenced life as hunters; at the same time they employed their leisure hours in earning money by the work of their hands in various ways. Florian, being a stonemason, had of course built his hut of stone; he was a fair blacksmith and carpenter, and was well provided with tools; but his principal occupation was whipmaking, from the hides of