The Sun.
London, England, 1861-04-06 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

~•
Egypt, the ,‘*oudan, and Central AfricabeingSketches from ,%ixteen Years' fravel By John
Petherick, F.R.G.S., H M. Consul for the Soudan.
William Blackwood and Sons.
This volume contains an interesting account of
travels and explorations among the savage tribes
that inhabit the western portion of Central Africa.
The author is one well qualified to describe them
from his long residence in the country, and from
the hardihood with which he penetrated into the
most dangerous regions. During the first part of
_
his wanderings he was engaged in the service of
Mehemet Ali Pacha, Viceroy of Egypt, in the
capacity of mining engineer. The Videroy was
very anxious to discover coal in his territories,
and therefore employed a French and an English
engineer, in the hope that the spirit of national.
rivalry would stimulate their efforts. The attempt
was, however, unsuccessful, and the author was
subsequently employed on a different expedition:
After some years he retired from the service of
the Egyptian Government and engaged in the
Burs and ivory trade. It was in the latter pur-
suit that he encountered his most exciting adven-
tures, as the search for tusks led him among wild
and hostile tribes, to whom the sight of a European
was something startling. The astonishment and
alarm excited by his firearms was unbounded,
and was often the means of preserving
the lives of the party. On one occasion he had
penetrated the domains of the Neam Nam, a fero-
cious tribe who inhabit the district near the moun-
tains of the Moon, a little to the north of Lake
Tanganyika. The savages gathered round their
encampment, seemingly in high good humour, but
before long the travellers discovered with some
difficulty, through the medium of their interpreters,
that their visitors were discussing the feast they
would furnish, which was only delayed for the
arrival of their chief. Feeling secure in the posh
session of their guns the party remained quiet, when
presently an old man appeared, who, aftera little
consideration, advised the tribe not to insult the
strangers, asking them if they knew any tribe that
would have dared to approach their village in such
small nambers. The savages replied in the nega-
tive, and the old man—whose powers of reasoning
seem to have been very good—went on to say that
since none knew whence they came, their country
must be far distant, and to have traversed all the
intervening lands in safety they must have some
strange means of defence.
This address seemed to have a beneficial effect with the
majority. The old man, motioning two or three of them
out of the way, seated himself near me, and endeavoured
to converse with me ; but failing, he called the interpreter.
first wish was to examine my rifle : removing the cap, I
tided it to him. Long and silent was his examination;
tn, most inexplicable part seeming the muzzle, which,
ins most
of being pointed, had a hole in it. Placing his
finger therein, he looked at me with the greatest
astoniaraent ; and to give lai.n a practical explanation,
I seizeL a fowling-piece from the hand of ray favourite
d
pointing to a vulture hovering over us, I
hunter,
re;
butd
efore the bird touched the ground, the crowd
to and grovelling in the dutit, as if every
wmanere 0 pt. rt ohsetu
d been shot. The old man's head, with ears, was at my
and
feet ; and when I raised
is ees were fixed
hhiims h, anniadsapopnea
on me with a meteiess expression. 1 thought he had
lost his senses.N was ghastly, h
er shaking him several times, I at
ttracting his attention to the lien
-n -last agonies between two of his men.
The in
g animation he gave was, putting
his hand to his head an,
lTbeihnrdeg,tfihqrst sign of retunn_
recovered ; and as soon as 116
examining himself, as if in search
hisH ve,g)icrea,dcuaaly
to the crowd, who, one after the
co of
other,ual drfloeurgsnatidnr.
raised their heao
lifeless comrades. After
and then again dropped them
at the sight of their apparelly
they ventured to rise, and
gin'y wounds commenced.
the repeated call of the old
a general inspection of ima
still greater danger
On other occasions he was
.es, and an old chief
nom the hostility of the tr
been for his myste-
once told him that had it not
the Whole party,
Lk marks on paper,
rious dealings with the little bl
his tribe would have annihilatel/4
since they were not so afraid of Liarms, as it
was
the destiny of all brave men tt. die i
but that they feared that sorcery wo n
'd exterminate
the whole tribe. Another time they •efused to let
him have porters for his goods, and k • •
t him in
state of siege. One tribe were in r,
rain, and insisted on the stranger toßit want of
battle,
marvellous powers bringing it for the The
ingenious devices by which ate author exricated
himself and his companions from these lerione
whc`%ad such
embarrassments will entertain the reader. The
following anecdote is amusing
They wore great smokers of tobacco, of their own gr.,vrthp
mixed with the rind of the banana, also indigenous to the
country. I was presented with some of it by Dimoo, .9,110
professed great attachment towards me. To my great tis• comfort, after having partaken of my pipe, he expressed
liking for my tobacco ; and not knowing how to l'efitse bra,
and at the same lime exceedingly anxious to retain intact
the small quantity remaining, I had recourse to a ruse;
and, giving instructions accordingly to my servant, he re-
tired into the interior of the hut to fill the pipe. In the
mean time I explained to Dimoo that if any person smoked
my tobacco who was not perfectly well disposed towards
him, it would betray him by breaking his pipe in mY
presence. Not afraid of the ordeal, he accepted a
well-replenished pipe, whilst my servant, by a sign, a°-
quainted me that my instructions had been curie'
out. Dimoo, seated opposite to me in company of some
eight or ten of the notabilities of the place, commenced
smoking vehemently, when an explosion of gunpowder in
the bowl of the pipe sent it, as well as the chief and companions, flying. Dirac* regained his equanimitly
begged me to pardon him, and that he would never more
conceal anything from me; and the only harm he meant
was to detain me amongst them until they had become
possessed of the whole of our riches, which he confessed, they greatly coveted As a proof of his sincerity and goo's...
feeling, he would now assist me in departing whenever A
chose. Explaining to him the necessity of my dapartur!
at a stated time, in order to return with an increased stow.-
of beads, I promised to wait the first rains, and to purcheris
all the ivory tnat could be procured. After this little even., I was looked upon as something almost superhuman,
and was respected accordingly.
It is a curious fact that some of the beads which
the Djour tribe possessed, and which the author
obtained specimens of, were found by his bead mer-
chant to have been manufactured at Venice solely
for the South American trade, and must cons& quently have reached the African continent through
slavers, In the earlier part of the work we have
many interesting details of the districts less central-
Here is an account of the depredations of the
white ants in the neighbourhood of Kordofan : •
The white ants infest this neighbourhood in great abun-
dance : standing proofs existed in numerous mounds of
earth, six feet above the level of the ground, and mostly of
a round shape, some ten or twelve feet in diameter at the
base. The trunks and branches of fallen trees bore
MIS
indis-
putable evidence of their presence; all those which had
fallen prior to or during the rainy season, when there
sufficient moisture for the insect to work, were covered
will a coating of mud, which, becoming hardened by
the sun, formed an incrustation, beneath which it de-
vours the wood. These were now in many instances en-
tirely hollow, every particle of the wood having been eaten.
Everything short of metal on the ground within their
reach is in danger of being eaten by them, as soon ae
it is covered ty a coating of earth. This covering is
intended only to guard them against the light, exposure to
which kills them. They are the greatest curse that call
infest an inhabited neighbourhood ; nothing is safe from"
them;
all woodwork of brick houses is attacked, and the
huts are daily covered with fresh incrustations b the per." severing insects, notwithstanding all the care of the inhabi-
tants, to beat them oil as soon as they are dry. It is neces-
sary to raise all articles of clothing from the ground. One
night night I remained at a house, ignorant of its being infested
by these destructive atoms. In the morning, when drawing
on my boots, my foot went through the bottom of one; the
sole had entirely disappeared, as if cut off by a knife, and
the greater part of my rug had also been eaten.
The work is written in an easy and agreeable style,
and gives the reader a great deal of information,
respecting the country and its wild inhabitants, in
an entertaining form. Those who are interested
in scientific explorations will learn from the intro-
ductory statement the particulars of the proposed
expedition, of which Mr. Petherick is to be the
leader, and which is to endeavour to join the party
already despatched by Government under Captains
Speke and Grant, towards the sources of the Nile
by way of Zanzibar. The anecdotes and incidents
of Arab and Negro life are numerous. We corn'
mend Mr. Petherick's interesting volume to all
who wish to improve their acquaintance with
Central Africa and its inhabitants, without incur'
ring the risk of furnishing a feast to the Neel°
Nam and their associates.