I
Repeated What I Had Before Told Him Concerning The Object Of My
Journey, And My Reasons For Passing Through His Country.
He seemed,
however, but half satisfied.
When I offered to show him the
contents of my portmanteau, and everything belonging to me, he was
convinced; and it was evident that his suspicion had arisen from a
belief that every white man must of necessity be a trader. When I
had delivered my presents, he seemed well pleased, and was
particularly delighted with the umbrella, which he repeatedly furled
and unfurled, to the great admiration of himself and his two
attendants, who could not for some time comprehend the use of this
wonderful machine. After this I was about to take my leave, when
the king, desiring me to stop a while, began a long preamble in
favour of the whites, extolling their immense wealth and good
dispositions. He next proceeded to an eulogium on my blue coat, of
which the yellow buttons seemed particularly to catch his fancy; and
he concluded by entreating me to present him with it, assuring me,
for my consolation under the loss of it, that he would wear it on
all public occasions, and inform every one who saw it of my great
liberality towards him. The request of an African prince, in his
own dominions, particularly when made to a stranger, comes little
short of a command. It is only a way of obtaining by gentle means
what he can, if he pleases, take by force; and as it was against my
interest to offend him by a refusal, I very quietly took off my
coat, the only good one in my possession, and laid it at his feet.
In return for my compliance, he presented me with great plenty of
provisions, and desired to see me again in the morning. I
accordingly attended, and found in sitting upon his bed. He told me
he was sick, and wished to have a little blood taken from him; but I
had no sooner, tied up his arm and displayed the lancet, than his
courage failed, and he begged me to postpone the operation till the
afternoon, as he felt himself, he said, much better than he had
been, and thanked me kindly for my readiness to serve him. He then
observed that his women were very desirous to see me, and requested
that I would favour them with a visit. An attendant was ordered to
conduct me; and I had no sooner entered the court appropriated to
the ladies, than the whole seraglio surrounded me - some begging for
physic, some for amber, and all of them desirous of trying that
great African specific, BLOOD-LETTING. They were ten or twelve in
number, most of them young and handsome, and wearing on their heads
ornaments of gold, and beads of amber.
They rallied me with a good deal of gaiety on different subjects,
particularly upon the whiteness of my skin and the prominency of my
nose. They insisted that both were artificial. The first, they
said, was produced when I was an infant, by dipping me in milk; and
they insisted that my nose had been pinched every day, till it had
acquired its present unsightly and unnatural conformation. On my
part, without disputing my own deformity, I paid them many
compliments on African beauty. I praised the glossy jet of their
skins, and the lovely depression of their noses; but they said that
flattery, or, as they emphatically termed it, honey-mouth, was not
esteemed in Bondou. In return, however, for my company or my
compliments (to which, by the way, they seemed not so insensible as
they affected to be) they presented me with a jar of honey and some
fish, which were sent to my lodging; and I was desired to come again
to the king a little before sunset.
I carried with me some beads and writing-paper, it being usual to
present some small offering on taking leave, in return for which the
king gave me five drachms of gold, observing that it was but a
trifle, and given out of pure friendship, but would be of use to me
in travelling, for the purchase of provisions. He seconded this act
of kindness by one still greater, politely telling me that, though
it was customary to examine the baggage of every traveller passing
through his country, yet, in the present instance, he would dispense
without ceremony, adding, I was at liberty to depart when I pleased.
Accordingly, on the morning of the 23rd, we left Fatteconda, and
about eleven o'clock came to a small village, where we determined to
stop for the rest of the day.
In the afternoon my fellow-travellers informed me that, as this was
the boundary between Bondou and Kajaaga, and dangerous for
travellers, it would be necessary to continue our journey by night,
until we should reach a more hospitable part of the country. I
agreed to the proposal, and hired two people for guides through the
woods; and as soon as the people of the village were gone to sleep
(the moon shining bright) we set out. The stillness of the air, the
howling of the wild beasts, and the deep solitude of the forest,
made the scene solemn and oppressive. Not a word was uttered by any
of us but in a whisper; all were attentive, and every one anxious to
show his sagacity by pointing out to me the wolves and hyaenas, as
they glided like shadows from one thicket to another. Towards
morning we arrived at a village called Kimmoo, where our guides
awakened one of their acquaintances, and we stopped to give the
asses some corn, and roast a few ground-nuts for ourselves. At
daylight we resumed our journey, and in the afternoon arrived at
Joag, in the kingdom of Kajaaga.
Being now in a country and among a people differing in many respects
from those that have as yet fallen under our observation, I shall,
before I proceed further, give some account of Bondou (the territory
we have left) and its inhabitants, the Foulahs, the description of
whom I purposely reserved for this part of my work.
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