Omaha daily bee., 1889-09-29
DARING CAMILLE DOULS.
A Frenchman's Adventures and Fate
in the Sahara,

One of the most daring of explorers
has fallen = victim to his own temerity.
The news is confirmed that Mr.. Camille
Douls, the French traveller, has been
murdered by his guides while crossing
the Sahara on his way to Timbuctoo.
His fate will surprise no one, though
all who have read of his remark
able travels in the great African des-
ert will deeply regret the fact that
this brilliant young man, after many
hair breadth escapes, has at last met "a
violent death,
Four years before he was killed, Mr..
Douls was wandering up and down
through the western Sahara with a
band of Arab shepherds, who, after
nearly killing him and keeping him
long in chains, We're at length convinced
that he was a true believer, and adopted
him into their tribe. says the New York
Sun. He was only 25 years old, but he
had a thorough knowledge of Arabic,
wa we'll versed in the Koran, and knew
much of the character and customs of
the desert nomads. 1t was his ambition
to explore Il part of the western desert
and of southern Morocco, which was
almost unknown, and, relying upon his
Mohammedan disguise, he had caused
himself to be set ashore from a fishing
BOAT on the west coast.
When he saw a herd of camels and
their Arab owners moving south over
the desert he advanced to meet the ma
tives, assuming the role of u ship
wrecked Algerian merchant. They
had never seen a Mohammedan of his
appearance. and refused to believe his
story. While ne was still explaining
his coming among them he was sudden
ly knocked senseless by II blow from the
back of n sabre which broke several of
his teeth and when he recovered on
seriousness he found himself in chains
and nearly stripped OF clothing. He
heard the young men say they would
kill him then and there, but he was
saved for the time by the more deliber-
ate chief, who threatened to shoot any
one who touched the prisoner before he
had fully satisfied himself that the man
WAS an imposter.
For days Douls, fettered hand and
foot, was carried along with the nOmads,
and subjected now and then to search
ing inquiries by one sheik and another
that they met, none of whom was fully
convinced that he was telling the ruth.
AT last they came to the camp of HadJ'
Ibrahaim, who had been to Mecca and
was II person Of great authority among
the nomads. After examining Doul5 in
UllS hOIuI. hS NONAtl So bliob liz IitNSA
seen Turkish Mohammedans who re-
sembled the prisoner, and had no doubt
the mans story was true. Douls was
then admitted into the fullest fellow
ship. The natives gave him a goatskin
as a covering, and for five months he
traversed with them the dreary steppes
of tho western Sahara still unknown to
Europeans. He crossed the sandy waste
of Duran and the great depression OF
Ell Juf, and visited the famous slave
market of Tenduf. AT last he became
betrothed to atwelve-year-old daughter
of a sheik, and it was or the preteXt of
returning home to get a suitable mar
riage portion that he was permitted to
leave the tribe and push north into
Morocco.
This was the chief goal of his ambi-
ton, for he was now in the province OF
Sus, rich in silver and copper. The
sultan, fearing the cupidity of Euro
peans, had forbidden explorers to visit
tins part of Morocco. While Douls was
getting all the information he could
collect among these mysterious mount
aims, he was seized and carried in
chains to the city of Morocco, where he
would without doubt have been put to
death had 1t not peer for the timely in
tervention of Sir William Groen, the
British minister.
1t was not the good fortune of Douls
to return again unscathed from this, his
chosen field of labor. Upon his next
venture into the heart of the great des-
ert he has fallen "a victim to the suspi-
cions or cupidity of his guides. In the
last letter received from him he spoke
dolefully of his prospects of reaching
the famous town near the Niger, but eX-
pressed his firm intention OF pushing
on toward the goal which has been the
destruction OF several explorers and
missionaries who have persisted in their
efforts TO reach it.