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was probably her own: the caprice and rapacity were, no doubt, imposed upon her by those to whom she belonged.

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The journey through the desert which lies between Fezzan and Bornou, was dreary enough, although enlivened by occasional adventures. In one instance, the Major witnessed an Arab foray, and had the satisfaction of interfering with effect in behalf of the unfortunate Tibboos. The oases seem, some of them at least, to have had enough of beauty to indemnify the Traveller for his previous exertion. At one time, it was a joyous valley, smiling in flowery grasses, tulloh-trees, and kossom;' at another, the party halted in a luxurious shade, the ground covered with creeping vines of the colocynth in full 'blossom, which, with the red flower of the kossom 'that hung drooping overhead, made the spot a little Arcadia ;' and again, after a dreary ride through scenes of unvarying sterility, fainting from the heat, choked with dust, and depressed by fatigue, it was delightful to lie down by a fresh and untroubled well, amid verdure, flowers, rich odours, fanning airs, and the wild melody of singing birds. But these specks of vegetation, beautiful by contrast, on the surface of an interminable waste, were soon to be succeeded by scenery of abundant, fertility, and objects of impressive grandeur. On gaining the summit of the elevated ground on which the town of Lari stands, the great lake Tchad, glowing with the golden rays of the sun in 'its strength,' burst at once upon the view. The borders of this majestic expanse exhibited a luxuriant vegetation, and birds of the most beautiful plumage seemed inclined rather to welcome than to avoid the human visitant. The sight of the lake was, however, calculated to excite emotions of a different kind from those produced by the mere occurrence of picturesque or sublime objects. It gave to our countrymen the animating assurance that they had overcome the most formidable of their difficulties, and that they were in the vicinity of the capital of Bornou, the point towards which their anxieties and efforts had been so long directed. Feb. 17, 1823, was the 'momentous day' that crowned their hopes with success, and its various scenes were well adapted to increase the strong mental excitement which must have previously existed. They were on the eve of introduction to a people unacquainted with white men; the very ground on which they were advancing, had never before been trodden by Europeans; and its geographical position had heretofore been the subject of mere approximation or vague surmise. The very character of the power on whose territories they stood, was unknown. By some it was affirmed, that the ruler of Bornou was nothing more than the predatory leader of a few ragged negro spear-men, and that he

was indebted for his casual successes to the bravery of his Arab auxiliaries. Other information described him as a powerful chieftain, commanding numerous and disciplined forces. These conflicting representations seem to have kept the minds of the travellers in a state of complete suspense; and until the moment of actual meeting, they were uncertain whether they should have to witness the evolutions of well-trained guards, or the mock majesty of an African despot, enthroned on a stool, cauopied by a tree, and surrounded by a handful of half-clothed halberdiers.

These doubts, however, were quickly removed. I had ridden on a short distance in front of Boo Khaloom, with his train of Arabs, all mounted and dressed out in their best apparel, and, from the thickness of the trees, soon lost sight of them. Fancying that the road could not be mistaken, I rode still onwards, and on approaching a spot less thickly planted, was not a little surprised to see in front of me a body of several thousand cavalry drawn up in line, and extending right and left quite as far as I could see; and, checking my horse, I awaited the arrival of my party, under the shade of a wide-spreading acacia. The Bornou troops remained quite steady, without noise or confusion: and a few horsemen, who were moving about in front giving directions, were the only persons out of the ranks. On the Arabs appearing in sight, a shout, or yell, was given by the Sheikh's people, which rent the air a blast was blown from their rude instruments of music equally loud, and they moved on to meet Boo Khaloom and his Arabs. There was an appearance of tact and management in their movements, which astonished me: three separate small bodies, from the centre and each flank, kept charging rapidly towards us, to within a few feet of our horses' heads, without checking the speed of their own until the moment of their halt, while the whole body moved onwards. These parties were mounted on small but very perfect horses, who stopped, and wheeled from their utmost speed with great precision and expertness, shaking their spears over their heads, exclaiming, "Barca! barca! Alla hiakkun cha, alla cheraga !-Blessing! blessing! Sons of your country! Sons of your country!" and returning quickly to the front of the body, in order to repeat the charge. While all this was going on, they closed in their right and left flanks, and surrounded the little body of Arab warriors so completely, as to give to the compliment of welcoming them very much the appearance of a declaration of their contempt for their weakness. I am quite sure this was premeditated; we were all so closely pressed as to be nearly smothered, and in some danger from the crowding of the horses and clashing of the spears. Moving on was impossible; and we therefore came to a full stop: our chief was much enraged, but it was all to no purpose; he was only answered by shrieks of "Welcome!" and spears most unpleasantly rattled over our heads expressive of the same feeling. This annoyance was not however of long duration. Barca Gana, the Sheikh's first general, a negro of a noble aspect, clothed in a figured silk tobe, and mounted on a beautiful Mandara horse, made

his appearance; and, after a little delay, the rear was cleared of those who had pressed in upon us, and we moved on, although but very slowly, from the frequent impediment thrown in our way by these wild equestrians.

The Sheikh's negroes, as they were called, meaning the black chiefs and favourites, all raised to that rank by some deed of bravery, were habited in coats of mail composed of iron chain, which covered them from the throat to the knees, dividing behind, and coming on each side of the horse; some of them had helmets, or rather skullcaps, of the same metal, with chin-pieces, all sufficiently strong to ward off the shock of a spear. Their horses' heads were also defended by plates of iron, brass, and silver, just leaving sufficient room for the eyes of the animal.'

These are, we suppose, the facts on which was founded the marvellous paragraph which appeared, some time since, in those depositories of authentic intelligence, the newspapers; setting forth that a nation had been found in the heart of Africa, exhibiting many striking evidences, in their armour, weapons, and military discipline, of their derivation from classic ancestry. It was intimated, that these gallant warriors were, without doubt, the descendants of those brave Mauritanians who withstood to the last the encroachments of Rome, and finding all unavailing, fell back on the interior, placing a wide and desert frontier between them and their invaders. Expectation was raised to the highest pitch. Imagination revelled in the anticipation of magnificent discoveries. Whole libraries of manuscripts would, of course, be brought to light. The Jugurtha Papers-Hannibal's Reveries-Hanna's DiaryMasinissa's Letters-were already in the hands of the decipherers, and would be announced in Mr. Murray's next list. And, now, all this fine prospect resolves itself into a body of downright negroes, well mounted, and wearing the chain. armour of the Saracenic horsemen! It must, however, be confessed, that the black lancer appears to great advantage in Mr. Finden's engraving from Sir R. K. Porter's spirited rifacimento of Major Denham's sketch. A large body of such troops, under any tolerable discipline, must have a formidable appearance, and their charge, if determined, might be effective; but at close quarters we apprehend that a few squadrons of good swordsmen would make an easy business of their discomfiture.

The introduction to Mohammed El-ameen ben Mohammed El-kanemy, Shiekh of Bornou, was managed in somewhat of a courtly fashion, and the appearance, as well as the deportment of that chief, was intelligent and dignified. He seemed to be of middle age; his features were fine, and his full, dark eyes gave them expression. At the second visit, the presents

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were displayed, and the various contrivances for adjusting and cleaning a double-barrelled gun, fixed his gratified attention. He was much delighted when told that his fame had reached the King of England, and, turning to his counsellor,' saidThis is in consequence of our defeating the Begharmies :'-an observation which called up Bagah Furby, an officer who had much distinguished himself in that war, with the astounding question— Did he ever hear of me?'- Certainly,' was the reply; and it was carried by acclamation, that the King of England must be a great man,' since he had heard of El-Kanemy, the Shiekh of Spears,' and of his general, Bagah Furby, the 'gatherer of horses.' On another occasion, he made minute inquiries respecting the European method of attacking walled towns; and when he found that a few rockets had been brought by the travellers, he was impatient until he witnessed their effects, which were most conspicuously exhibited on a subsequen occasion, when one was fired perpendicularly, and another in the direction of the horison. The Shiekh having heard of Major Denham's musical box, which played or stopped at the holding up of a finger, requested to see it.

The wild exclamations of wonder and screams of pleasure that this piece of mechanism drew from the generality of my visitors, were curiously contrasted in the person of the intelligent Shiekh: he at first was greatly astonished, and asked several questions, exclaiming, A gieb! gieb!" wonderful! wonderful!" But the sweetness of the Swiss Ranz-des-Vaches which it played, at last overcame every other feeling he covered his face with his hand, and listened in silence; and on one man near him breaking the charm by a loud exclamation, he struck him a blow which made all his followers tremble............ During this short conversation, we became better friends than we had ever been before, during our three former visits. To his surprise, he now found that I spoke intelligible Arabic, and he begged to see me whenever I chose these were just the terms upon which I wished to be with him; and thinking this a favourable moment for adding strength to his present impressions, I could not help begging he would keep the box. He was the more delighted, as I had refused it before to Karouash, when he had requested it in the Shiekh's name.'

This extraordinary man was originally nothing more than a private individual, and has raised himself to his present rank by his daring efforts and signal success in the deliverance of his country from a state of vassalage. Bornou, after a contention of several years, had been subjugated by the Felatahs, a powerful nation, inhabiting the regions to the westward. Elhanemy, by the well-imagined fiction of a celestial vision, persuaded his native tribe, the Kanemboo, to take up arms under his command, and commencing his career of glory by the de

feat of 8000 men with a force not exceeding 400, advanced from victory to victory, until he had expelled the invaders. Rejecting nominal dignity in favour of real power, he refused the sovereignty, and retaining the dictatorship, he gave up the ensigns of royalty to the Sultan, who holds his court at NewBirnie, where he indemnifies himself for the absence of dominion, by keeping up all the mummery of state etiquette. When he was visited by Boo-Khaloom and the Europeans, he gave audience in the open air; his throne was enclosed in a sort of wooden cage, and his courtiers squatted on the ground at a considerable distance, with their backs towards the seat of royalty. All the absurd peculiarities which marked the court ceremonial of the ancient negro sovereigns of Bornou, are still retained at New-Birnie. Large bellies and large 'heads' are indispensible at the sultan's levee, and stuffing and padding are quite in vogue. A dozen shirts of different colours are worn over each other, immense turbans disfigure the head, and charms, enclosed in small cases of red leather, are suspended over every part of this grotesque attire.

In the mean time, a great deal of discussion had been going forward between the Arabs and the Shiekh, concerning a ghrazzie or predatory attack on some of the bordering tribes, for the purpose of procuring slaves. Boo-Khaloom himself, although averse to the project, from motives of humanity, was ultimately compelled to give way, and arrangements were made for a movement to the southward. Major Denham determined to join this expedition, with the double view of attaining a further point in an otherwise impracticable line of investigation, and of witnessing the military manoeuvres of the Bornou troops. These were under the orders of Barca Gana, the Shiekh's principal negro general; a sort of Murat, brave and enterprising, but more successful when under the direction of his more skilful master than when in uncontroled command. The Arabs were led by Boo-Khaloom. Barca Gana had with him his musical and poetical band,' who made such melody as they could, and sung extempore songs about the valour of their master, and the dollars and double-barrelled gun of Major Denham.

، Christian man all white,
And dollars white have he.'

The kashella, or general, was preceded by twelve running 'footmen,' with long poles, who held back the branches that overhung the paths, and exercised their lungs with great

energy.

Take care of the holes!-avoid the branches !-here is the road!

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