But I was
determined to land him safe at last, in such a manner that his greatest
supporter should be obliged to acknowledge that he had received the
fairest play. Abou Saood's Fatiko station was crowded with slaves. His
people were all paid in slaves. The stations of Fabbo, Faloro, and
Farragenia were a mass of slaves.
I did not enter a station to interfere with these wretched captives, as
I knew that such an act would create irretrievable confusion.
I had only 212 men, and I wished to advance to the equator.
Fatiko was in north latitude 3 degrees 01 minutes, and 165 miles from
headquarters. Had I attempted to release some thousand slaves from the
different stations, I should have required a large military force to
have occupied those stations, and to have driven out the whole of the
slave-hunters bodily.
If the slaves had been released, it would have been impossible to have
returned them to their homes, as they had been collected from every
quarter of the compass and from great distances. If I had kept them, I
could not have procured food for so large a number: as the stations
contained several thousand.
Under the circumstances, I took the wiser course of non-interference
with the stock in hand, but I issued the most severe orders respecting
the future conduct of Abou Saood's companies. I arranged to leave a
detachment of 100 men, under the command of Major Abdullah, to form a
station adjoining that of Abou Saood in Fatiko, together with the
heavier baggage and the greater portion of the ammunition.
The government would be thus represented by a most respectable and
civilized officer, who would give confidence and protection to the
country; as I concluded that the prestige of the Khedive would be
sufficient to establish order among his subjects, by the representation
of one of his officers and a detachment of 100 troops.
I gave orders to Gimoro and Shooli to prepare carriers for the journey
to Unyoro.
An untoward occurrence had taken place shortly after our arrival at
Fatiko.
As has already been described, the Lobore natives had not only cheated
us out of many cows that had been received, for which the carriers had
not been forthcoming, but numbers had deserted on the road, which had
caused the troops great trouble and fatigue, as they had been obliged to
divide among them the abandoned loads. Upon our arrival at Fatiko, the
son of sheik Abbio, of Lobore, would have absconded with all his people,
had he not been retained by the troops. This man was responsible for the
natives who had engaged themselves for the journey.
It would have been the height of imprudence to have permitted the
immediate departure of our carriers before I had arranged for the
future, thus about eighty were secured by the soldiers, including the
sheik's son, from a general stampede that took place.
I ordered them to be disarmed, as I considered that if unarmed, they
would not venture alone through the Madi country.
In the evening they were secured by a slight line tied round each man's
neck, and connected in gangs of five. A guard was placed over them in
addition to the usual sentries.
At about 4 a.m. a signal was given by one of their people. Every man had
gnawed through his cord with his teeth during the darkness, and at the
concerted cry in a language that no one understood, the entire party, of
upwards of eighty men, knocked down the astonished guard, also the
sentries, and rushed headlong over the rocks in the direction of Lobore.
It was a natural impulse and a soldier's duty to fire in the direction
of the assailants, as the overturned sentries quickly recovered and
joined the guard in a volley.
I was up in an instant, and upon arrival at the spot I was informed of
the occurrence. It was pitch dark, therefore a lantern was brought, and
after a search, three bodies were discovered of the rash and unfortunate
Lobore. I was exceedingly sorry that such an event had happened, at the
same time I could hardly blame the sentries. I was much afraid that if
three were shot dead, others must have escaped wounded, and altogether
the affair would have a bad effect at Lobore.
The sheik of Fatiko was named Wat-el-Ajoos. This name had been given him
by the slave-hunters, meaning "Son of the old man." His village was not
quite half a mile from our camp, and he frequently came to see me with
his interpreter, accompanied by his wives.
Upon his first visit I gave him a long blue shirt, together with some
yards of Turkey red cambric, to form a waist sash; also a red fez and
two razors, with a quantity of beads for his wives.
Fatiko is merely a district of the great country of Shooli, which is
governed by the sheik, Rot Jarma. This person had sent word that he
intended to visit me, to tender his allegiance to the government.
On 16th March, a wild sound of many horns was the first introduction,
and shortly after, a number of his people advanced chanting a peculiar
low song, and dancing a solemn slow step. The great sheik came behind
them. He was quickly ushered into my presence beneath a shady acacia,
close to my tent door. He was perfectly red from head to toes, having
been freshly smeared with red ochre and grease for the interview. A
well-dressed skin of an antelope was slung across his shoulder, and
descending across his loins it constituted his scanty clothing.
His conversation was merely a repetition of the old story being a series
of complaints against the slave-hunters.
