The Town Is
Considerable, And Is The Head-Quarters Of Our Old Friend, The
Great Sheik Achmet Abou Sinn; He Is Now Absent, But His Son Ali
Is At Home.
He received us very kindly, and lodged us in his own
house within a large inclosed court, with a well of good water in
the centre.
Having read my firman, be paid us the usual
compliments, but he lacked the calm dignity and ease of manner of
his grand old father. He sat stiffly upon the divan, occasionally
relieving the monotony of his position by lifting up the cover of
the cushions, and spitting beneath it. Not having a handkerchief,
but only the limited natural advantages of a finger and thumb, a
cold in the head gave him much trouble, and unpleasant marks upon
the wall exhibited hieroglyphics of recent date, that were ill
adapted to the reception-room of an Arab chieftain. In about an
hour he departed, and shortly after, a dinner of four dishes was
brought. No. 1 was an Arab Irish stew, but alas! MINUS the
potatoes; it was very good, nevertheless, as the mutton was fat.
No. 2 was an Arab stew, with no Irish element; it was very hot
with red pepper, and rather dry. No. 3 was a good quick fry of
small pieces of mutton in butter and garlic (very good); and No.
4 was an excellent dish of the usual melach, already described.
The wind had within the last few days changed to south, and we
had been subjected to dust storms and sudden whirlwinds similar
to those we had experienced at this season in the preceding year,
when about to start from Berber. We left Rufaar, and continued
our march along the banks of the Blue Nile, towards Khartoum. It
was intensely hot; whenever we felt a breeze it was accompanied
with a suffocating dust, but the sight of the broad river was
cool and refreshing. During the dry season the water of the Blue
Nile is clear, as its broad surface reflects the colour of the
blue sky; hence the appellation, but at that time it was
extremely shallow, and in many places it is fordable at a depth
of about three feet, which renders it unnavigable for large
boats, which, laden with corn, supply Khartoum from the fertile
provinces of the south. The river had now begun to rise, although
it was still low, and the water was muddy, as the swelling
torrents of Abyssinia brought impurities into the main channel.
It was at this same time last year, when at Berber, that we had
noticed the sudden increase and equally sudden fall of the Nile,
that was influenced by the fluctuations of the Blue Nile, at a
time when the Atbara was dry.
From Abou Harraz throughout the route to Khartoum there is no
object of interest; it is the same vast flat, decreasing rapidly
in fertility until it mingles with the desert; and once more, as
we journey to the north, we leave the fertile lands behind, and
enter upon sterility. The glare of barren plains and the heat of
the summer's sun were fearful. Bacheet had a slight coup de
soleil; my Tokrooris, whose woolly heads were shaved, and simply
covered with a thin skull-cap, suffered severely, as we marched
throughout the burning hours of the day. The Arabs were generally
very inhospitable, as this was the route frequented by all native
merchants, where strangers were of daily occurrence; but towards
evening we arrived at a village inhabited by a large body of
Fakeers, or priests. As we entered, we were met by the principal
Faky, who received us with marked attention, and with a charming
courtesy of manner that quite won our hearts; he expressed
himself as delighted at our arrival, hoped we were not fatigued
by the heat, and trusted that we would rest for a few minutes
before we departed to the enchanting village "just beyond those
trees," as he pointed to a clump of green nabbuk on the yellow
plain, about a mile distant; there, he assured us, we could
obtain all kinds of supplies, together with shade, and a lovely
view of the river. We were delighted with this very gentlemanly
Faky, and, saying adieu with regret, we hurried on to the
promised village "just beyond those trees."
For fourteen miles we travelled, hungry and tired, beyond the
alluring clump of trees, along the wild desert of hot sand
without a habitation; the only portion of truth in the Faky's
description was the "lovely view of the river," that certainly
accompanied us throughout our journey. We were regularly "sold"
by the cunning Faky, who, not wishing to be incommoded by our
party, had got rid of us in a most gentlemanly manner. At length
we arrived at a village, where we had much difficulty in
procuring provisions for ourselves and people.
On the 11th June, having slept at the village of Abou Dome, we
started at sunrise, and at 9 A.M. we reached the bank of the
river, opposite to Khartoum. We were delighted with the view, as
the morning sun shone upon the capital of the Soudan provinces;
the grove of date trees shaded the numerous buildings, their dark
green foliage contrasting exquisitely with the many coloured
houses on the extreme margin of the beautiful river; long lines
of vessels and masts gave life to the scene, and we felt that
once more, after twelve months of utterly wild life, we had
arrived in civilization. We had outridden our camels, therefore
we rode through a shallow arm of the river, and arrived upon an
extensive sandbank that had been converted into a garden of
melons; from this point a large ferry-boat plied regularly to the
town on the south bank. In a few minutes we found ourselves on
board, with our sole remaining horse, Tetel, also the donkeys
that we had purchased in Berber before our expedition, and our
attendants.
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