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Richard Burton on Sanaag – At the Origins of the British Anti-Somali Perfidy

[ Posted On: 2008-07-17 ]

Following an earlier article about the recent developments in the area of Sanaag, I came to recall a fascinating text that is not widely known among today/s Somalis. I would characterize it as a Classic of Orientalist literature, and it was written in the middle of the 19th century.

However, it was not written for the purpose of educating the ancestors of modern Somalis. In fact, it was composed by a leading English adventurer and Orientalist who contributed greatly to the formation of a great number of ideas and preconceived schemes the English shared about the wider Red Sea area, involving the Eastern African coast, the Arabian peninsula, and the Horn of Africa.

The book is a real goldmine in revealing precisely

1. how the colonial European powers, and more specifically, the English, projected their preconceived ideas about other nations, religions, faiths, histories and cultures, their misconceptions, delusions, misapprehensions, and their misunderstandings onto the sphere of academic knowledge, science, and truth,

2. how they fell victims of their own errors,

3. how their initial errors dragged them to further and more critical, political, errors,

4. how they projected their aforementioned inconsistencies onto the sphere of the foreign policy, and more particularly onto their relationship with the various local peoples, and

5. how this unfortunate chain of discrepancies and anomalies was projected onto the Somalis to plunge them in confusion and tie them with the colonial power.

The book, in and by itself, reveals in a splendid way what colonialism has always been: a misunderstanding and an aberration built thereon.

Somalia in its totality is not the main subject of the book; a marginal part of Somalia is. However, Harar/s historical magnificence and radiance was such that anything written about Harar normally concerns parts of the greater Somalia.

Not a single chapter of the main part of the book describes the illustrious province of Sanaag; the first Appendix does. As a matter of fact, it is about a diary written and the observations made by an English army lieutenant, who was the first to identify the lake Victoria as source of the Nile, and he was the first European to reach there. The lieutenant is not the author of the book, who also was a famous explorer, and bitter rivalry characterized the two English explorers.

The diary concerns none else than Lieutenant Speke for whom an interesting, brief but informative, profile was composed by the BBC Historic Figures section (http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/speke_john_hanning.shtml).

The book was written by Richard Burton, the famous explorer and treacherous traveler, who – due to his excellent linguistic skills in Arabic – managed to enter Mecca, although a Christian. He was the first European to enter Harar, Africa/s holiest Islamic shrine and the Islamic world/s fourth most venerated place. An introductory presentation can be found in wikipedia, but it is highly biased (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Francis_Burton). On the contrary, an interesting book review about his ‘First footsteps in East Africa or, An Exploration of Harar/ and Burton/s adventures in Harar was published here: http://www.roadjunky.com/article/711/richard-burton-harar-travel-book.

I republish here integrally the Appendix I, Diary and Observations Made by Lieutenant Speke, When Attempting to Reach the Wadi Nogal. Richard Burton/s ‘First footsteps in East Africa or, An Exploration of Harar/ was published in 1856.

I would be ready to publish various comments, and to comment on excerpts of Lieutenant Speke/s Diary, so I welcome your comments, corrections, rectifications, and criticism of this deeply anti-Somali text.

I re-publish the controversial text here because I am convinced that it reveals negative intentions against, and a wrong perception of, Somalia; the ensuing English colonization of the northern part of Somalia was carried out by people who were based …. precisely on this text!

It is therefore essential for today/s Somalis not to have illusions about the permanently anti-Somali policies of England. To liberate, pacify, re-unify, and rehabilitate Somalia, one has to bear this in mind.

Diary and Observations Made by Lieutenant Speke, When Attempting to Reach the Wadi Nogal - Appendix I
From: First footsteps in East Africa or, An Exploration of Harar
by Richard Burton
http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/b/burton/richard/b97f/appendix1.html

Diary

On the 28th October, 1854, Lieutenant Speke arrived at Kurayat, a small village near Las Kuray (Goree Bunder), in the country called by the Somal “Makhar,” or the eastern maritime region. During the period of three months and a half he was enabled to make a short excursion above the coast-mountains, visiting the Warsingali, the Dulbahanta, and the Habr Gerhajis tribes, and penetrating into a region unknown to Europeans. The bad conduct of his Abban, and the warlike state of the country, prevented his reaching the “Wady Nogal,” which, under more favourable circumstances and with more ample leisure than our plans allowed him, he conceives to be a work of little difficulty and no danger. He has brought back with him ample notices of the region visited, and has been enabled to make a valuable collection of the Fauna, which have been forwarded to the Curator of the Royal As. Society/s Museum, Calcutta. On the 15th February, 1855, Lieutenant Speke revisited Kurayat, and there embarked for Aden.

Before proceeding to Lieutenant Speke/s Journal, it may be useful to give a brief and general account of the region explored.

The portion of the Somali country visited by Lieutenant Speke may be divided into a Maritime Plain, a Range of Mountains, and an elevated Plateau.

The Maritime Plain, at the points visited by Lieutenant Speke, is a sandy tract overlying limestone, level to the foot of the hills, and varying from half a mile to two miles in breadth. Water is not everywhere procurable. At the village of Las Kuray, there is an old and well built well, about twelve feet deep, producing an abundant and excellent supply. It appears that the people have no implements, and are too barbarous to be capable of so simple an engineering operation as digging. The vegetation presents the usual appearance of salsolaceous plants thinly scattered over the surface, with here and there a stunted growth of Arman or Acacia. The watershed is of course from south to north, and the rain from the hills is carried off by a number of Fiumaras or freshets, with broad shallow beds, denoting that much of the monsoon rain falling in the mountains is there absorbed, and that little finds its way to the sea. At this season (the dry weather) the plain is thinly inhabited; there are no villages except on the sea-shore, and even these were found by the traveller almost entirely deserted, mostly women occupying the houses, whilst the men were absent, trading and tending cattle in the hills. The harbours are, generally speaking, open and shallow road-steads, where ships find no protection; there is, however, one place (Las Galwayta), where, it is said, deep water extends to the shore.

Meteorological observations show a moderate temperature, clear air, and a regular north-easterly wind. It is probable that, unlike the Berberah Plain, the monsoon rain here falls in considerable quantities. This land belongs in part to the Warsingali. Westwards of Las Galwayta, which is the frontier, the Habr Gerhajis lay claim to the coast. The two tribes, as usual in that unhappy land, are on terms of “Dam” or blood-feud; yet they intermarry.

The animals observed were, the Waraba, a dark-coloured cynhyena, with a tail partly white, a grey jackal, and three different kinds of antelopes. Besides gulls, butcher birds, and a description of sparrow, no birds were found on the Maritime Plain.

The Range of Mountains is that long line which fringes the Somali coast from Tajurrah to Ras Jerd Hafun (Cape Guardafui). In the portion visited by Lieutenant Speke it is composed principally of limestones, some white, others brownish, and full of fossil shells. The seaward face is a gradual slope, yet as usual more abrupt than the landward side, especially in the upper regions. Steep irregular ravines divide the several masses of hill. The range was thinly covered with Acacia scrub in the lower folds. The upper portion was thickly clad with acacia and other thorns, and upon the summit, the Somali pine tree observed by me near Harar, and by Lieutenant Herne at Gulays, first appeared. Rain had freshly fallen.

The animal creation was represented by the leopard, hyena, rhinoceros, Waraba, four kinds of antelopes, hares and rats, tailless and long-tailed. It is poor in sea birds (specimens of those collected have been forwarded to the As. Society/s Museum), and but one description of snake was observed. These hills belong partly to the Warsingali, and partly to the Habr Gerhajis. The frontier is in some places denoted by piles of rough stones. As usual, violations of territorial right form the rule, not the exception, and trespass is sure to be followed by a “war.” The meteorology of these hills is peculiar. The temperature appears to be but little lower than the plain: the wind was north-easterly; and both monsoons bring heavy rains.

At Yafir, on the summit of the hill, Lieutenant Speke/s thermometer showed an altitude of about 7500 feet. The people of the country do not know what ice means. Water is very scarce in these hills, except during the monsoon: it is found in springs which are far apart; and in the lower slopes collected rain water is the sole resource. This scarcity renders the habits of the people peculiarly filthy.

After descending about 2000 feet from the crest of the mountains to the southern fall, Lieutenant Speke entered upon the platform which forms the country of the Eastern Somal. He is persuaded that the watershed of this extensive tract is from N.W. to S.E., contrary to the opinion of Lieutenant Cruttenden, who, from information derived from the Somal, determined the slope to be due south. “Nogal” appears, according to Lieutenant Speke, to be the name of a tract of land occupied by the Warsingali, the Mijjarthayn, and the northern clan of the Dulbahantas, as Bohodlay in Haud is inhabited by the southern. Nogal is a sterile table-land, here and there thinly grown with thorns, perfectly useless for agriculture, and, unless it possess some mineral wealth, valueless. The soil is white and stony, whereas Haud or Ogadayn is a deep red, and is described as having some extensive jungles. Between the two lies a large watercourse, called “Tuk Der,” or the Long River. It is dry during the cold season, but during the rains forms a flood, tending towards the Eastern Ocean. This probably is the line which in our maps is put down as “Wady Nogal, a very fertile and beautiful valley.”

The surface of the plateau is about 4100 feet above the level of the sea: it is a space of rolling ground, stony and white with broken limestone. Water is found in pools, and in widely scattered springs: it is very scarce, and in a district near and south of the hills Lieutenant Speke was stopped by want of this necessary. The climate appeared to our traveller delightful In some places the glass fell at 6 A.M. to 25°, yet at noon on the same day the mercury rose to 76°. The wind was always N. E., sometimes gentle, and occasionally blowing strongly but without dust. The rainy monsoon must break here with violence, and the heat be fearful in the hot season. The principal vegetation of this plateau was Acacia, scarce and stunted; in some places under the hills and in the watercourses these trees are numerous and well grown. On the other hand, extensive tracts towards the south are almost barren. The natives speak of Malmal (myrrh) and the Luban (incense) trees. The wild animals are principally antelopes; there are also ostriches, onagers, Waraba, lions (reported to exist), jackals, and vermin. The bustard and florikan appear here. The Nomads possess large flocks of sheep, the camels, cows, and goats being chiefly found at this season on the seaward side of the hills, where forage is procurable. The horses were stunted tattoos, tolerably well-bred, but soft for want of proper food. It is said that the country abounds in horses, but Lieutenant Speke “doubts the fact.” The eastern portion of the plateau visited by our traveller belongs to the Warsingali, the western to the Dulbahantas: the former tribe extends to the S. E., whilst the latter possess the lands lying about the Tuk Der, the Nogal, and Haud. These two tribes are at present on bad terms, owing to a murder which led to a battle: the quarrel has been allowed to rest till lately, when it was revived at a fitting opportunity. But there is no hostility between the Southern Dulbahantas and the Warsingali, on the old principle that “an enemy/s enemy is a friend.”

On the 21st October, 1854, Lieutenant Speke, from the effects of a stiff easterly wind and a heavy sea, made by mistake the harbour of Rakudah. This place has been occupied by the Rer Dud, descendants of Sambur, son of Ishak. It is said to consist of an small fort, and two or three huts of matting, lately re-erected. About two years ago the settlement was laid waste by the rightful owners of the soil, the Musa Abokr, a sub-family of the Habr Tal Jailah.

22nd October. — Without landing, Lieutenant Speke coasted along to Bunder Hais, where he went on shore. Hais is a harbour belonging to the Musa Abokr. It contains a “fort,” a single-storied, flat-roofed, stone and mud house, about 20 feet square, one of those artless constructions to which only Somal could attach importance. There are neither muskets nor cannon among the braves of Hais. The “town” consists of half a dozen mud huts, mostly skeletons. The anchoring ground is shallow, but partly protected by a spur of hill, and the sea abounds in fish. Four Buggaloes (native craft) were anchored here, waiting for a cargo of Dumbah sheep and clarified butter, the staple produce of the place. Hais exports to Aden, Mocha, and other parts of Arabia; it also manufactures mats, with the leaves of the Daum palm and other trees. Lieutenant Speke was well received by one Ali, the Agil, or petty chief of the place: he presented two sheep to the traveller. On the way from Bunder Jedid to Las Kuray, Lieutenant Speke remarks that Las Galwayta would be a favourable site for a Somali settlement. The water is deep even close to the shore, and there is an easy ascent from it to the summit of the mountains. The consequence is that it is coveted by the Warsingali, who are opposed by the present proprietors, the Habr Gerhajis. The Sultan of the former family resists any settlement for fear of dividing and weakening their force; it is too far from their pastures, and they have not men enough for both purposes.

28th October. — Lieutenant Speke landed at Kurayat, near Las Kuray, and sent a messenger to summon the chief, Mohammed Ali, Gerad or Prince of the Warsingali tribe.

During a halt of twenty-one days, the traveller had an opportunity of being initiated into the mysteries of Somali medicine and money hiding. The people have but two cures for disease, one the actual cautery, the other a purgative, by means of melted sheep/s-tail, followed by such a draught of camel/s milk that the stomach, having escaped the danger of bursting, is suddenly and completely relieved. It is here the custom of the wealthy to bury their hoards, and to reveal the secret only when at the point of death. Lieutenant Speke went to a place where it is said a rich man had deposited a considerable sum, and described his “cache” as being “on a path in a direct line between two trees as far as the arms can reach with a stick.” The hoarder died between forty and fifty years ago, and his children have been prevented by the rocky nature of the ground, and their forgetting to ask which was the right side of the tree, from succeeding in anything beyond turning up the stones.

Las Kuray is an open roadstead for native craft. The town is considered one of the principal strongholds of the coast. There are three large and six small “forts,” similar in construction to those of Hais; all are occupied by merchants, and are said to belong to the Sultan. The mass of huts may be between twenty and thirty in number. They are matted buildings, long and flat-roofed; half a dozen families inhabit the same house, which is portioned off for such accommodation. Public buildings there are none, and no wall protects the place. It is in the territory of the Warsingali, and owns the rule of the Gerad or Prince, who sometimes lives here, and at other times inhabits the Jungle. Las Kuray exports gums, Dumbah sheep, and guano, the latter considered valuable, and sent to Makalla in Arabia, to manure the date plantations.

Four miles westward of Las Kuray is Kurayat, also called Little Kuray. It resembles the other settlement, and is not worth description. Lieutenant Speke here occupied a fort or stone house belong to his Abban; finding the people very suspicious, he did not enter Las Kuray for prudential motives. There the Sultan has no habitation; when he visited the place he lodged in the house of a Nacoda or ship-captain.

Lieutenant Speke was delayed at Kurayat by the pretext of want of cattle; in reality to be plundered. The Sultan, who inhabits the Jungle, did not make his appearance till repeatedly summoned. About the tenth day the old man arrived on foot, attended by a dozen followers; he was carefully placed in the centre of a double line bristling with spears, and marched past to his own fort. Lieutenant Speke posted his servants with orders to fire a salute of small firearms. The consequence was that the evening was spent in prayers.

During Lieutenant Speke/s first visit to the Sultan, who received him squatting on the ground outside the house in which he lodged, with his guards about him, the dignitary showed great trepidation, but returned salams with politeness.! He is described as a fine-looking man, between forty-eight and fifty years of age; he was dressed in an old and dirty Tobe, had no turban, and appeared unarmed. He had consulted the claims of “dignity” by keeping the traveller waiting ten days whilst he journeyed twenty miles. Before showing himself he had privily held a Durbar at Las Kuray; it was attended by the Agils of the tribe, by Mohammed Samattar (Lieutenant Speke/s Abban), and the people generally. Here the question was debated whether the traveller was to be permitted to see the country. The voice of the multitude was as usual contra, fearing to admit a wolf into the fold. It was silenced however by the Sultan, who thought fit to favour the English, and by the Abban, who settled the question, saying that he, as the Sultan/s subject, was answerable for all that might happen, and that the chief might believe him or not;—“how could such Jungle-folk know anything?”

On the morning of the 8th November the Sultan returned Lieutenant Speke/s visit. The traveller took the occasion of “opening his desire to visit the Warsingali country and the lands on the road to Berberah, keeping inland about 200 miles, more or less according to circumstances, and passing through the Dulbahantas.”

To this the Sultan replied, that “as far as his dominions extended the traveller was perfectly at liberty to go where he liked; but as for visiting the Dulbahantas, he could not hear of or countenance it.” Mahmud Ali, Gerad or Prince of the southern Dulbahantas, was too far away for communication, and Mohammed Ali Gerad, the nearest chief, had only ruled seven or eight years; his power therefore was not great. Moreover, these two were at war; the former having captured, it is said, 2000 horses, 400 camels, and a great number of goats and sheep, besides wounding a man. During the visit, which lasted from 8 A.M. to 2 P.M., the Sultan refused nothing but permission to cross the frontier, fearing, he said, lest an accident should embroil him with our Government. Lieutenant Speke gave them to understand that he visited their country, not as a servant of the Company, but merely as a traveller wishing to see sport. This of course raised a laugh; it was completely beyond their comprehension. They assured him, however, that he had nothing to apprehend in the Warsingali country, where the Sultan/s order was like that of the English. The Abban then dismissed the Sultan to Las Kuray, fearing the appetites of his followers; and the guard, on departure, demanded a cloth each by way of honorarium. This was duly refused, and they departed in discontent. The people frequently alluded to two grand grievances. In the first place they complained of an interference on the part of our Government, in consequence of a quarrel which took place seven years ago at Aden, between them and the Habr Tal Jailah tribe of Karam. The Political Resident, it is said, seized three vessels belonging to the Warsingali, who had captured one of the ships belonging to their enemies; the former had command of the sea, but since that event they have been reduced to a secondary rank. This grievance appears to be based on solid grounds. Secondly, they complained of the corruption of their brethren by intercourse with a civilised people, especially by visiting Aden: the remedy for this evil lies in their own hands, but desire of gain would doubtless defeat any moral sanitary measure which their Elders could devise. They instanced the state of depravity into which the Somal about Berberah had fallen, and prided themselves highly upon their respect for the rights of meum and tuum, so completely disregarded by the Western States. But this virtue may arise from the severity of their chastisements; mutilation of the hand being the usual award to theft. Moreover Lieutenant Speke/s Journal does not impress the reader highly with their honesty. And lastly, I have found the Habr Awal at Berberah, on the whole, a more respectable race than the Warsingali.

Lieutenant Speke/s delay at Kurayat was caused by want of carriage. He justly remarks that “every one in this country appeals to precedent”; the traveller, therefore, should carefully ascertain the price of everything, and adhere to it, as those who follow him twenty years afterwards will be charged the same. One of the principal obstacles to Lieutenant Speke/s progress was the large sum given to the natives by an officer who visited this coast some years ago. Future travellers should send before them a trusty Warsingali to the Sultan, with a letter specifying the necessary arrangements, a measure which would save trouble and annoyance to both parties.

On the 10th of November the Sultan came early to Lieutenant Speke/s house. He received a present of cloth worth about forty rupees. After comparing his forearm with every other man/s and ascertaining the mean, he measured and re-measured each piece, an operation which lasted several hours. A flint gun was presented to him, evidently the first he had ever handled; he could scarcely bring it up to his shoulder, and persisted in shutting the wrong eye. Then he began as usual to beg for more cloth, powder, and lead. By his assistance Lieutenant Speke bought eight camels, inferior animals, at rather a high price, from 10 to 16-1/2 cloths (equivalent to dollars) per head. It is the custom for the Sultan, or in his absence, for an Agil to receive a tithe of the price; and it is his part to see that the traveller is not overcharged. He appears to have discharged his duty very inefficiently, a dollar a day being charged for the hire of a single donkey. Lieutenant Speke regrets that he did not bring dollars or rupees, cloth on the coast being now at a discount.

After the usual troubles and vexations of a first move in Africa, on the 16th of November, 1854, Lieutenant Speke marched about three miles along the coast, and pitched at a well close to Las Kuray. He was obliged to leave about a quarter of his baggage behind, finding it impossible with his means to hire donkeys, the best conveyance across the mountains, where camels must be very lightly laden. The Sultan could not change, he said, the route settled by a former Sahib. He appears, though famed for honesty and justice, to have taken a partial view of Lieutenant Speke/s property. When the traveller complained of his Abban, the reply was, “This is the custom of the country, I can see no fault; all you bring is the Abban/s, and he can do what he likes with it.”

The next day was passed unpleasantly enough in the open air, to force a march, and the Sultan and his party stuck to the date-bag, demanding to be fed as servants till rations were served out to them.

18th November.—About 2 A.M. the camels (eleven in number) were lightly loaded, portions of the luggage being sent back to Kurayat till more carriage could be procured. The caravan crossed the plain southwards, and after about two miles/ march entered a deep stony watercourse winding through the barren hills. After five miles/ progress over rough ground, Lieutenant Speke unloaded under a tree early in the afternoon near some pools of sweet rain water collected in natural basins of limestone dotting the watercourse. The place is called Iskodubuk; the name of the watercourse is Duktura. The Sultan and the Abban were both left behind to escort the baggage from Las Kuray to Kurayat. They promised to rejoin Lieutenant Speke before nightfall; the former appeared after five, the latter after ten, days. The Sultan sent his son Abdallah, a youth of about fifteen years old, who proved so troublesome that Lieutenant Speke was forced repeatedly to dismiss him: still the lad would not leave the caravan till it reached the Dulbahanta frontier. And the Abban delayed a Negro servant, Lieutenant Speke/s gun-bearer, trying by many offers and promises to seduce him from service.

19th November.—At dawn the camels were brought in; they had been feeding at large all night, which proves the safety of the country. After three hours/ work at loading, the caravan started up the watercourse. The road was rugged; at times the watercourse was blocked up with boulders, which compelled the travellers temporarily to leave it. With a little cutting away of projecting rocks, which are of soft stone, the road might be made tolerably easy. Scattered and stunted Acacias, fringed with fresh green foliage, relieved the eye; all else was barren rock. After marching about two miles the traveller was obliged to halt by the Sultan; a messenger arrived with the order. The halting-place is called Damalay. It is in the bed of the watercourse, stagnating rain, foul-looking but sweet, lying close by. As in all other parts of this Fiumara, the bed was dotted with a bright green tree, sometimes four feet high, resembling a willow. Lieutenant Speke spread his mat in the shade, and spent the rest of the day at his diary and in conversation with the natives.

The next day was also spent at Damalay. The interpreter, Mohammed Ahmed, a Somali of the Warsingali tribe, and all the people, refused positively to advance. Lieutenant Speke started on foot to Las Kuray in search of the Abban: he was followed at some distance by the Somal, and the whole party returned on hearing a report that the chief and the Abban were on the way. The traveller seems on this occasion to have formed a very low estimate of the people. He stopped their food until they promised to start the next day.

21st November.—The caravan marched at gun-fire, and, after a mile, left the watercourse, and ascended by a rough camel-path a buttress of hill leading to the ridge of the mountains. The ascent was not steep, but the camels were so bad that they could scarcely be induced to advance. The country was of a more pleasant aspect, a shower of rain having lately fallen. At this height the trees grow thicker and finer, the stones are hidden by grass and heather, and the air becomes somewhat cooler. After a six miles/ march Lieutenant Speke encamped at a place called Adhai. Sweet water was found within a mile/s walk;—the first spring from which our traveller drank. Here he pitched a tent.

At Adhai Lieutenant Speke was detained nine days by the non-appearance of his “Protector” and the refusal of his followers to march without him. The camels were sent back with the greatest difficulty to fetch the portion of the baggage left behind. On the 24th Lieutenant Speke sent his Hindostani servant to Las Kuray, with orders to bring up the baggage. “Imam” started alone and on foot, not being permitted to ride a pony hired by the traveller: he reported that there is a much better road for laden camels from the coast to the crest of the hills. Though unprotected, he met with no difficulty, and returned two days afterwards, having seen the baggage en route. During Lieutenant Speke/s detention, the Somal battened on his provisions, seeing that his two servants were absent, and that no one guarded the bags. Half the rice had been changed at Las Kuray for an inferior description. The camel drivers refused their rations because all their friends (thirty in number) were not fed. The Sultan/s son taught them to win the day by emptying and hiding the water-skins, by threatening to kill the servants if they fetched water, and by refusing to do work. During the discussion, which appears to have been lively, the eldest of the Sultan/s four sons, Mohammed Aul, appeared from Las Kuray. He seems to have taken a friendly part, stopped the discussion, and sent away the young prince as a nuisance. Unfortunately, however, the latter reappeared immediately that the date bags were opened, and Mohammed Aul stayed only two days in Lieutenant Speke/s neighbourhood. On the 28th November the Abban appeared. The Sultan then forced upon Lieutenant Speke his brother Hasan as a second Abban, although this proceeding is contrary to the custom of the country. The new burden, however, after vain attempts at extortion, soon disappeared, carrying away with him a gun.

For tanning water-skins the Somal here always use, when they can procure it, a rugged bark with a smooth epidermis of a reddish tinge, a pleasant aromatic odour, and a strong astringent flavour. They call it Mohur: powdered and sprinkled dry on a wound, it acts as a styptic. Here was observed an aloe-formed plant, with a strong and woody thorn on the top. It is called Haskul or Hig; the fibres are beaten out with sticks or stones, rotted in water, and then made into cord. In other parts the young bark of the acacia is used; it is first charred on one side, then reduced to fibre by mastication, and lastly twisted into the semblance of a rope.

From a little manuscript belonging to the Abban, Lieutenant Speke learned that about 440 years ago (A.D. 1413), one Darud bin Ismail, unable to live with his elder brother at Mecca, fled with a few followers to these shores. In those days the land was ruled, they say, by a Christian chief called Kin, whose Wazir, Wharrah, was the terror of all men. Darud collected around him, probably by proselytising, a strong party: he gradually increased his power, and ended by expelling the owners of the country, who fled to the N.W. as far as Abyssinia. Darud, by an Asyri damsel, had a son called Kabl Ullah, whose son Harti had, as progeny, Warsingali, Dulbahanta, and Mijjarthayn. These three divided the country into as many portions, which, though great territorial changes have taken place, to this day bear their respective owners/ names.

Of this I have to observe, that universal tradition represents the Somal to be a people of half-caste origin, African and Arabian; moreover, that they expelled the Gallas from the coast, until the latter took refuge in the hills of Harar. The Gallas are a people partly Moslem, partly Christian, and partly Pagan; this may account for the tradition above recorded. Most Somal, however, declare “Darud” to be a man of ignoble origin, and do not derive him from the Holy City. Some declare he was driven from Arabia for theft. Of course each tribe exaggerates its own nobility with as reckless a defiance of truth as their neighbours depreciate it. But I have made a rule always to doubt what semi-barbarians write. Writing is the great source of historical confusion, because falsehoods accumulate in books, persons are confounded, and fictions assume, as in the mythologic genealogies of India, Persia, Greece, and Rome, a regular and systematic form. On the other hand, oral tradition is more trustworthy; witness the annals and genealogies preserved in verse by the Bhats of Cutch, the Arab Nassab, and the Bards of Belochistan.

30th November.—The Sultan took leave of Lieutenant Speke, and the latter prepared to march in company with the Abban, the interpreter, the Sultan/s two sons, and a large party. By throwing the tent down and sitting in the sun he managed to effect a move. In the evening the camels started from Adhai up a gradual ascent along a strong path. The way was covered with bush, jungle, and trees. The frankincense, it is said, abounded; gum trees of various kinds were found; and the traveller remarked a single stunted sycamore growing out of a rock. I found the tree in all the upper regions of the Somali country, and abundant in the Harar Hills. After two miles/ march the caravan halted at Habal Ishawalay, on the northern side of the mountains, within three miles of the crest. The halting-ground was tolerably level, and not distant from the waters of Adhai, the only spring in the vicinity. The travellers slept in a deserted Kraal, surrounded by a stout fence of Acacia thorns heaped up to keep out the leopards and hyenas. During the heat Lieutenant Speke sat under a tree. Here he remained three days; the first in order to bring up part of his baggage which had been left behind; the second to send on a portion to the next halting-place; and the third in consequence of the Abban/s resolution to procure Ghee or clarified butter. The Sultan could not resist the opportunity of extorting something by a final visit—for a goat, killed and eaten by the camel-drivers contrary to Lieutenant Speke/s orders, a dollar was demanded.

4th December, 1854.—About dawn the caravan was loaded, and then proceeded along a tolerably level pathway through a thick growth of thorn trees towards a bluff hill. The steep was reached about 9 A.M., and the camels toiled up the ascent by a stony way, dropping their loads for want of ropes, and stumbling on their road. The summit, about 500 yards distant, was reached in an hour. At Yafir, on the crest of the mountains, the caravan halted two hours for refreshment. Lieutenant Speke describes the spot in the enthusiastic language of all travellers who have visited the Seaward Range of the Somali Hills. It appears, however, that it is destitute of water. About noon the camels were again loaded, and the caravan proceeded across the mountains by a winding road over level ground for four miles. This point commanded an extensive view of the Southern Plateau. In that direction the mountains drop in steps or terraces, and are almost bare; as in other parts rough and flat topped piles of stones, reminding the traveller of the Tartar Cairns, were observed. I remarked the same in the Northern Somali country; and in both places the people gave a similar account of them, namely, that they are the work of an earlier race, probably the Gallas. Some of them are certainly tombs, for human bones are turned up; in others empty chambers are discovered; and in a few are found earthern and large copper pots. Lieutenant Speke on one occasion saw an excavated mound propped up inside by pieces of timber, and apparently built without inlet. It was opened about six years ago by a Warsingali, in order to bury his wife, when a bar of metal (afterwards proved by an Arab to be gold) and a gold ring, similar to what is worn by women in the nose, were discovered. In other places the natives find, it is said, women/s bracelets, beads, and similar articles still used by the Gallas.

After nightfall the caravan arrived at Mukur, a halting-place in the southern declivity of the hills. Here Lieutenant Speke remarked that the large watercourse in which he halted becomes a torrent during the rains, carrying off the drainage towards the eastern coast. He had marched that day seventeen miles, when the party made a Kraal with a few bushes. Water was found within a mile in a rocky basin; it was fetid and full of animalculae. Here appeared an old woman driving sheep and goats into Las Kuray, a circumstance which shows that the country is by no means dangerous.

After one day/s halt at Mukur to refresh the camels, on the 6th December Lieutenant Speke started at about 10 A.M. across the last spur of the hills, and presently entered a depression dividing the hills from the Plateau. Here the country was stony and white-coloured, with watercourses full of rounded stones. The Jujube and Acacias were here observed to be on a large scale, especially in the lowest ground. After five miles the traveller halted at a shallow watercourse, and at about half a mile distant found sweet but dirty water in a deep hole in the rock. The name of this station was Karrah.

8th December.—Early in the morning the caravan moved on to Rhat, a distance of eight miles: it arrived at about noon. The road lay through the depression at the foot of the hills. In the patches of heather Florikan was found. The Jujube-tree was very large. In the rains this country is a grassy belt, running from west to east, along a deep and narrow watercourse, called Rhat Tug, or the Fiumara of Rhat, which flows eastward towards the ocean. At this season, having been “eaten up,” the land was almost entirely deserted; the Kraals lay desolate, the herdsmen had driven off their cows to the hills, and the horses had been sent towards the Mijjarthayn country. A few camels and donkeys were seen: considering that their breeding is left to chance, the blood is not contemptible. The sheep and goats are small, and their coats, as usual in these hot countries, remain short. Lieutenant Speke was informed that, owing to want of rain, and it being the breeding season, the inland and Nomad Warsingali live entirely on flesh, one meal serving for three days. This was a sad change of affairs from what took place six weeks before the traveller/s arrival, when there had been a fall of rain, and the people spent their time revelling on milk, and sleeping all day under the shade of the trees—the Somali idea of perfect happiness.

On the 9th December Lieutenant Speke, halting at Rhat, visited one of “Kin/s” cities, now ruined by time, and changed by the Somal having converted it into a cemetery. The remains were of stone and mud, as usual in this part of the world. The houses are built in an economical manner; one straight wall, nearly 30 feet long, runs down the centre, and is supported by a number of lateral chambers facing opposite ways, e. g.

This appears to compose the village, and suggests a convent or a monastery. To the west, and about fifty yards distant, are ruins of stone and good white mortar, probably procured by burning the limestone rock. The annexed ground plan will give an idea of these interesting remains, which are said to be those of a Christian house of worship. In some parts the walls are still 10 feet high, and they show an extent of civilisation now completely beyond the Warsingali. It may be remarked of them that the direction of the niche, as well as the disposition of the building, would denote a Moslem mosque. At the same time it must be remembered that the churches of the Eastern Christians are almost always made to front Jerusalem, and the Gallas being a Moslem and Christian race, the sects would borrow their architecture from each other. The people assert these ruins to be those of Nazarenes. Yet in the Jid Ali valley of the Dulbahantas Lieutenant Speke found similar remains, which the natives declared to be one of their forefathers/ mosques; the plan and the direction were the same as those now described. Nothing, however, is easier than to convert St. Sophia into the Aya Sufiyyah mosque. Moreover, at Jid Ali, the traveller found it still the custom of the people to erect a Mala, or cross of stone or wood covered with plaster, at the head and foot of every tomb.

The Dulbahantas, when asked about these crosses, said it was their custom, derived from sire and grandsire. This again would argue that a Christian people once inhabited these now benighted lands.

North of the building now described is a cemetery, in which the Somal still bury their dead. Here Lieutenant Speke also observed crosses, but he was prevented by the superstition of the people from examining them.

On an eminence S.W. of, and about seventy yards from the main building, are the isolated remains of another erection, said by the people to be a fort. The foundation is level with the ground, and shows two compartments opening into each other.

Rhat was the most southerly point reached by Lieutenant Speke. He places it about thirty miles distant from the coast, and at the entrance of the Great Plateau. Here he was obliged to turn westward, because at that season of the year the country to the southward is desolate for want of rain—a warning to future visitors. During the monsoon this part of the land is preferred by the people: grass grows, and there would be no obstacle to travellers.

Before quitting Rhat, the Abban and the interpreter went to the length of ordering Lieutenant Speke not to fire a gun. This detained him a whole day.

11th December.— Early in the morning, Lieutenant Speke started in a westerly direction, still within sight of the mountains, where not obstructed by the inequalities of the ground. The line taken was over an elevated flat, in places covered with the roots of parched up grass; here it was barren, and there appeared a few Acacias. The view to the south was shortened by rolling ground: hollow basins, sometimes fifteen miles broad, succeed each other; each sends forth from its centre a watercourse to drain off the water eastward. The face of the country, however, is very irregular, and consequently description is imperfect. This day ostriches and antelopes were observed in considerable numbers. After marching ten miles the caravan halted at Barham, where they found a spring of clear and brackish water from the limestone rock, and flowing about 600 yards down a deep rocky channel, in parts lined with fine Acacias. A Kraal was found here, and the traveller passed a comfortable night.

12th December.—About 9 A.M. the caravan started, and threaded a valley, which, if blessed with a fair supply of water, would be very fertile. Whilst everything else is burned up by the sun on the high ground, a nutritious weed, called Buskallay, fattens the sheep and goats. Wherever, therefore, a spring is found, men flock to the place and fence themselves in a Kraal. About half-way the travellers reached Darud bin Ismail/s tomb, a parallelogram of loose stones about one foot high, of a battered and ignoble appearance; at one extremity stood a large sloping stone, with a little mortar still clinging to it. No outer fence surrounded the tomb, which might easily be passed by unnoticed: no honors were paid to the memory of the first founder of the tribe, and the Somal did not even recite a Fatihah over his dust. After marching about twelve miles, the caravan encamped at Labbahdilay, in the bed of a little watercourse which runs into the Yubbay Tug. Here they found a small pool of bad rain water. They made a rude fence to keep out the wild beasts, and in it passed the night.

(to be continued)

Article Source: http://www.afroarticles.com/article-dashboard

About The Author: Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis - is Orientalist, Assyriologist, Egyptologist, Iranologist, Islamologist, Historian and Political Scientist. Dr. Megalommatis, 51, is the author of 12 books, dozens of scholarly articles, hundreds of encyclopedia entries, and thousands of articles. He speaks, reads and writes more than 15, modern and ancient, languages.

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