My Friend
At Harar, The Shaykh Jami, Had Repeatedly Called Upon Us, Ate Bread And
Salt, Recommended Us To His Fellow Countrymen, And Used My Intervention In
Persuading Avaricious Ship-Owners To Transport, Gratis, Pauper Pilgrims To
Arabia.
The people, after seeing the deaths of a few elephants, gradually
lowered their loud boasts and brawling claims:
They assisted us in digging
a well, offered their services as guides and camel-drivers, and in some
cases insisted upon encamping near us for protection. Briefly, we saw no
grounds of apprehension. During thirty years, not an Englishman of the
many that had visited it had been molested at Berberah, and apparently
there was as little to fear in it as within the fortifications of Aden.
[3]
Under these favourable circumstances we might have set out at once towards
the interior. Our camels, fifty-six in number, had been purchased [4], and
the Ogadayn Caravan was desirous of our escort. But we wished to witness
the close of the Berberah fair, and we expected instruments and other
necessaries by the mid-April mail from Europe. [5]
About 8 P.M., on the 9th April, a shower, accompanied by thunder and
lightning, came up from the southern hills, where rain had been falling
for some days, and gave notice that the Gugi or Somali monsoon had begun.
This was the signal for the Bedouins to migrate to the Plateau above the
hills. [6] Throughout the town the mats were stripped from their
frameworks of stick and pole [7], the camels were laden, and thousands of
travellers lined the roads. The next day Berberah was almost deserted
except by the pilgrims who intended to take ship, and by merchants, who,
fearful of plundering parties, awaited the first favourable hour for
setting sail. Our protectors, Jami and Burhale, receiving permission to
accompany their families and flocks, left us in charge of their sons and
relations. On the 15th April the last vessel sailed out of the creek, and
our little party remained in undisputed possession of the place.
Three days afterwards, about noon, an Aynterad craft _en route_ from Aden
entered the solitary harbour freighted with about a dozen Somal desirous
of accompanying us towards Ogadayn, the southern region. She would have
sailed that evening; fortunately, however, I had ordered our people to
feast her commander and crew with rice and the irresistible dates.
At sunset on the same day we were startled by a discharge of musketry
behind the tents: the cause proved to be three horsemen, over whose heads
our guard had fired in case they might be a foraging party. I reprimanded
our people sharply for this act of folly, ordering them in future to
reserve their fire, and when necessary to shoot into, not above, a crowd.
After this we proceeded to catechise the strangers, suspecting them to be
scouts, the usual forerunners of a Somali raid: the reply was so plausible
that even the Balyuz, with all his acuteness, was deceived. The Bedouins
had forged a report that their ancient enemy the Hajj Sharmarkay was
awaiting with four ships at the neighbouring port, Siyaro, the opportunity
of seizing Berberah whilst deserted, and of re-erecting his forts there
for the third time. Our visitors swore by the divorce-oath,--the most
solemn which the religious know,--that a vessel entering the creek at such
unusual season, they had been sent to ascertain whether it had been
freighted with materials for building, and concluded by laughingly asking
if we feared danger from the tribe of our own protectors. Believing them,
we posted as usual two sentries for the night, and retired to rest in our
wonted security.
Between 2 and 3 A.M. of the 19th April I was suddenly aroused by the
Balyuz, who cried aloud that the enemy was upon us. [8] Hearing a rush of
men like a stormy wind, I sprang up, called for my sabre, and sent Lieut.
Herne to ascertain the force of the foray. Armed with a "Colt," he went to
the rear and left of the camp, the direction of danger, collected some of
the guard,--others having already disappeared,--and fired two shots into
the assailants. Then finding himself alone, he turned hastily towards the
tent; in so doing he was tripped up by the ropes, and as he arose, a
Somali appeared in the act of striking at him with a club. Lieut. Herne
fired, floored the man, and rejoining me, declared that the enemy was in
great force and the guard nowhere. Meanwhile, I had aroused Lieuts.
Stroyan and Speke, who were sleeping in the extreme right and left tents.
The former, it is presumed, arose to defend himself, but, as the sequel
shows, we never saw him alive. [9] Lieut. Speke, awakened by the report of
firearms, but supposing it the normal false alarm,--a warning to
plunderers,--he remained where he was: presently hearing clubs rattling
upon his tent, and feet shuffling around, he ran to my Rowtie, which we
prepared to defend as long as possible.
The enemy swarmed like hornets with shouts and screams intending to
terrify, and proving that overwhelming odds were against us: it was by no
means easy to avoid in the shades of night the jobbing of javelins, and
the long heavy daggers thrown at our legs from under and through the
opening of the tent. We three remained together: Lieut. Herne knelt by my
right, on my left was Lieut. Speke guarding the entrance, I stood in the
centre, having nothing but a sabre. The revolvers were used by my
companions with deadly effect: unfortunately there was but one pair. When
the fire was exhausted, Lieut. Herne went to search for his powder-horn,
and that failing, to find some spears usually tied to the tent-pole.
Whilst thus engaged, he saw a man breaking into the rear of our Rowtie,
and came back to inform me of the circumstance.
At this time, about five minutes after the beginning of the affray, the
tent had been almost beaten down, an Arab custom with which we were all
familiar, and had we been entangled in its folds, we should have been
speared with unpleasant facility.
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