Travels Of Richard And John Lander Into The Interior Of Africa For The Discovery Of The Course And Termination Of The Niger By Robert Huish
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It Was Not
Supposed That He Would Pay Any Attention To The Request; And Yet On
The Other Hand, It
Was scarcely to be imagined that he would carry
his chicanery so far, because he must fear that the variety
Of orders
they had given him, to receive valuable presents from England, would
never be honoured by their countrymen, if he refused to fulfil his
engagements with them.
Since the demise of the late governor, it was calculated that Jenna
had lost more than five hundred of its population, chiefly by wars,
intestine broils, &c. and all for want of a ruler. It must not,
however, be imagined, that because the people of this country are
almost perpetually engaged in conflicts with their neighbours, the
slaughter of human beings is therefore very great. They pursue war,
as it is called, partly as an amusement, or "to keep their hands in
it," and partly to benefit themselves by the capture of slaves. As
they were sailing down the coast, they were informed that the natives
of La Hoo, and Jack-a-jack, had been warring for three years
previously, and were still at variance, but during that long period
only one single decrepit old woman, who found it no easy matter to
run as fast as her countrymen, was left behind, and became the
solitary victim of a hundred engagements. Much after the same fashion
are the bloodless wars of Jenna. Success depends much more on the
cunning and address of the parties, than on any extraordinary display
of intrepidity, and living not dead subjects are sought after, so
that it is their interest to avoid hard blows, and enrich themselves
by the sale of their prisoners. Perhaps the extraordinary decrease in
the population of Jenna, has arisen principally from the desertion of
slaves, who embrace the opportunity, whilst their masters are from
home, engaged in predatory excursions, of running away; and thus the
latter often become losers instead of gainers by their unnatural
passion for stealing their fellow creatures. The individuals captured
are sent to the coast, and the chiefs of those unsettled and
barbarous tribes that inhabit it, are appointed agents to regulate
the sale of them, for which they receive half the profits.
Late in the evening, the young Fellata already mentioned, paid them a
visit, and offered his horse for sale. He was a mahommedan priest,
and was accompanied by a countryman of the same persuasion, but
neither of the holy men appeared in their dealing to understand the
meaning of truth or justice. An agreement was made and thirty dollars
paid. The merchant implored them not to tell his father, who was the
real owner of the horse, that he had sold him for less money than he
had received, and in this request, he was seconded by his more
venerable friend, because he said he wanted a small sum for his
private use, which he knew his parent would refuse him. The words
were hardly out of their mouths, before the two Mussulmans publicly
went through their ablutions in front of the house, where, turning
their faces to the east, they seemed to pray very devoutly to the
founder of their faith. When this was concluded, they sang an Arabic
hymn with great solemnity, and the whole had a wonderful and
immediate effect on the feelings of many of their followers in the
yard, who, mistaking loudness of voice for fervour, and hypocritical
seriousness for piety, made the two worshippers a present of money.
The Fellatas are generally supposed to be spies from Soccatoo, but
although this is a very prevalent opinion, no measures whatever have
yet been taken either to watch their motions, or question them as to
their intentions.
The women of Jenna employ themselves generally either in spinning
cotton, or preparing Indian corn for food. Much of the former
material grows in the vicinity of the town, but the cultivation of
the plant is not carried on with that spirit which it deserves. Silk,
which is brought over land from Tripoli, the inhabitants sometimes
interweave in their cotton garments, but such being very expensive,
are only worn by the higher class of people. They have abundance of
sheep, bullocks, pigs, goats, and poultry, but they prefer vegetable
food to animal; their diet, indeed, is what we should term poor and
watery, consisting chiefly of preparations of the yam and Indian
corn, notwithstanding which a stronger or more athletic race of
people is nowhere to be met with. Burdens with them, as with the
natives of many parts of the continent, are invariably carried on the
head, which, it is more than likely, occasions that dignified
uprightness of form, and stateliness of walk, so often spoken of by
those acquainted with the pleasing peculiarities, of the African
female. The weight of a feather is borne on the head in preference to
its being carried in the hand; and it not infrequently requires the
united strength of three men to lift a calabash of goods from the
ground to the shoulder of one, and then, and not till then, does the
amazing strength of the African appear. The greater part of the
inhabitants of Jenna have the hair of their head and their eyebrows
shaven. But the governor's ministers and servants wear their hair in
the shape of a horse shoe as a mark of distinction. It is confined to
the crown of the head by large daubs of indigo, and none of the
people presuming to imitate it, it answers the purpose of a livery.
The early part of the morning of April 10th, was obscured by a mist
or haze, which was as thick, and at least as unwholesome, as a London
fog in November, but between nine and ten o'clock it dispersed; and
the sun shone out with uncommon lustre. The hut which they occupied
was in a large square yard, and was the property of the late
governor's wife, whose story is rather romantic.
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