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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Almost The First Person Who Presented
Herself, Was His Friend The Merchant's Sister, He Had Almost Said,
The Fair Omhal Henna, (The Mother Of Peace.) We Shall Allow Major
Denham To Relate This African Amour In His Own Words:
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"She had a wooden bowl of haleb (fresh milk) in her hand, the
greatest rarity she could offer, and holding out the milk, with some
confusion, towards me, with both her hands, the hood, which should
have concealed her beautiful features, had fallen back. As my taking
my milk from her, would have prevented the amicable salutation we
both seemed prepared for, and which consisted of four or five gentle
pressures of the hand, with as many aish harleks, and tiels, and
ham-dulillahs, she placed the bowl upon the ground, while the
ceremonies of greeting, which take up a much longer time in an
African village, than in an English drawing room, were by mutual
consent most cordially performed. I really could not help looking at
her with astonishment, and I heartily wish I had the power of
conveying an idea of her portrait. It was the jemma (Friday,) the
sabbath, and she was covered, for I cannot call it dressed, with only
a blue linen barracan, which passed under one arm, and was fastened
on the top of the opposite shoulder, with a silver pin, the remaining
part thrown round the body behind, and brought over her head as a
sort of hood, which, as I have before remarked, had fallen off, and
my having taken her hand, when she set down the milk, had prevented
its being replaced.
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