After This I Was
About To Take My Leave, When The King, Desiring Me To Stop Awhile, Began
Along 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 him 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 provision. 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 with that ceremony; adding, that I
was at liberty to depart when I pleased.
Accordingly, on the morning of the 23d, 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 move 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 impressive.
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 groundnuts 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.
Bondou is bounded on the east by Bambouk; on the south-east, and south,
by Tenda, and the Simbani Wilderness; on the south-west by Woolli; on the
west by Foota Torra; and on the north by Kajaaga.
The country, like that of Woolli, is very generally covered with woods,
but the land is more elevated, and towards the Faleme river, rises into
considerable hills. In native fertility the soil is not surpassed, I
believe, by any part of Africa.
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