FEZZAŃ, a country of considerable extent in Northern Africa, and situated to the south of Barbary. Its northern boundary is the well of Bonjem, which is situated in lat. 30. 35. 32. N. South of this point it extends, according to Captain Lyon, six degrees and a half of latitude, or about 450 miles, and is bounded in that quarter by what are called the Wells of Meshroo. To the south and south-east is the country of the Tibboos, to the south-west that of the nomadic Tuaricks, and to the north-west the borderers are Arabs. Of this tract of country it is calculated that about 300 miles, stretching from north to south, are cultivated. The greatest breadth is estimated at 200 miles; but the Black Haratch to the east, and other deserts to the south and west, are, according to Horneman, included in its territory. Fezzan may be said to consist of a chain of verdant islands embosomed in an ocean of sand. Fine yellow sand, and a species of gravel, cover the whole surface of the plains, except where the Soudah and Haratch extend. It is only in the immediate neighbourhood of towns that the palm is cultivated, and that corn and esculent plants, of which a little is raised with great difficulty and labour, are produced. The plains of the desert consist of red sand and sand-stone, containing gypsum and rock-salt, associated with beds of dolomite and carbonate of lime. Soda, alum, saltpetre, and sulphur, are also found in this country.

In order to convey as clear and intelligible a view of Fezzan as possible, we shall follow the route generally pursued by travellers in proceeding from Tripoli to Mourzouk, the capital, and thence to the other parts of the country which have been described. About half a mile beyond the walls of Bonjem, which is the northern frontier, stands a Roman castle, situated amongst some high sand hills. It is of an oblong form, having in the centre of each of the walls a large arched gateway, between two strong towers. After leaving this interesting ruin, the traveller proceeds over a barren desert called Klia, the soil of which, where clear of sand, consists of gypsum intermixed with numerous shells. Twenty-two miles from Bonjem the road leads through a defile called Hormut Emhalla, or the Pass of the Army. After crossing a range of table-mountains called Elood, running north-east and south-west, it passes through a stony and very uneven plain, encircled with mountains, to the pass of Hormut Tazzet, which appears to be situated about sixty miles from Bonjem. After clearing this pass, the road opens upon a plain called El Grarat Arab Hoon. The journey now becomes harassing, on account of the scarcity of vegetation and water, and the frequency of sand-winds. The first place of importance that is met with on this route is Sockna, near which are a plantation of palms and two wells of fresh water.

Sockna, which is about half way between Tripoli and Mourzouk, is situated on an immense plain of gravel. It is bounded to the south by the Soudah Mountains, at the distance of about fifteen miles; to the eastward by the mountains of Wadan, at the distance of about thirty miles; to the westward by a distant range of hills; and to the northward by the country above described. The town, which is about a mile in circumference, is walled, and contains, according to Major Denham, considerably more than 3000 persons. The streets are very narrow, and the houses are built of mud mixed with small stones. The water is almost all brackish or bitter. In the immediate neighbourhood there are several hundred thousand date trees, which pay duty to the government. Sockna pays of duty annually about 2000 dollars, exclusively of a tax of one dollar on every 200 date trees. The Tripoli money is the currency of Sockna; and this occasions a considerable loss to the traders, who are obliged to pay their taxes in Spanish dollars, which they purchase at exorbitant prices. The dates grow in a belt of sand, at the distance of two or three miles from the towns; and then-quality is far superior to any produced in the north of Africa, in consequence of which they bring a very high price in Tripoli. In the gardens situated about three miles from Sockna, barley, maize, a small quantity of onions, and a few other garden-stuff’s, are cultivated. But there is little or no other kind of vegetation, so that all the animals are fed on dates. This place is infested with an immense quantity of flies, attracted probably by the dates, which are preserved in storehouses. The men have in general a clean and neat appearance, whilst the women are pretty and handsome, but remarkable, it seems, for their love of intrigue. The latitude of Sockna is 29. 5. 36. N.

Ten miles east by south from Sockna stands the town of Hoon. It is smaller than the former, but is built and walled in the same manner. Palm groves and gardens approach close to the walls of the town, and completely conceal it. The soil is sand, but it is fertilized and refreshed by little streams from wells of brackish water. Twelve miles east by north of Hoon stands the town of Wadan. Its external aspect is pleasing, being built upon a conical hill, on the top of which are some enclosed houses called the castle; but internally it is inferior to the two other towns in point of neatness, comfort, and convenience. There is here a well of great depth, cut through the solid rock. The bulk of the inhabitants of Wadan are schereefs, that is, pretended descendants of the Prophet, and Arabs who act as shepherds. A few miles eastward of the town there is a chain of mountains, which, with the town itself, derives its name from a species of buffalo called wadan, which is found here in immense numbers. There is also a great abundance of ostriches amongst these mountains, by hunting which many of the natives obtain a subsistence. At all the three towns, Sockna, Hoon, and Wadan, it is the practice to keep tame ostriches in a stable, and in two years to take three cuttings of the feathers.

The whole way to Mourzouk is now an almost uninterrupted succession of stony plains and gloomy wadys, with no water but that of wells, generally muddy, brackish, or bitter, and placed at widely extended intervals. Sand winds also prevail, and their visitations are at all times harassing, and not unfrequently destructive. Several towns or villages are situated in this long and dreary waste, and they are usually encircled with groves of palm. Sebha, whip stands in latitude 27. 3. 8. N., is a mud-walled town, picturesquely situated on a rising ground, and surrounded by a palm grove. Two marches farther on lies Ghroodwa, a small and miserable collection of mud huts. The palms here, which are the property of the sultan, extend from ten to fifteen miles east and west. The leading features of the above remarkable tract of country may be shortly described. The basaltic chain known by the name or θ Soudah, or Jebel Assoud, that is, Black Mountains, commences near Sockna, and extends from north to south three [7:9:531]days’ journey, but in so tortuous· a direction as not, according to Major Denham, to exceed thirty-five miles in a straight line. Captain Lyon, however, is of opinion that they stretch nearly a hundred miles from north to south between the parallels of 28. 40. and 27. 30. To the westward they extend as far as the well of Assela, on the road to Shiati, a district to the westward of Sebha, where the red clay hills continue unbroken, and unite with those of Benioleed in Tripoli. To the east they extend three days to a wady called Temelleen, which lies on the way to Zella or Zala near Barca. They form, indeed, a branch or continuation of the mountainous desert called Haratch el Assouan which was traversed by Horneman in his route from Cairo to Mourzouk. That traveller gives a fearful description of this wild region, so much dreaded by those who have had to traverse it. The mountain presents the appearance of an imperfect cone, and the rock, upon fracture, seemed to Horneman to consist of ferruginous basalt. Range upon range of black and dreary mountains, intersected by narrow and dismal ravines rather than valleys, rose before his view. Here and there, however, the eye was relieved by the sight of patches of vegetation, approaching even to luxuriance, from the rains which fall in this hilly region. Contiguous to the Black lies the White Haratch, a chain of mountains composed of friable limestone, and abounding in petrifactions. To the south of Sockna, the description of the Jebel Assoud, as given by Major Denham, exactly corresponds to that of the Black Haratch. Dr Oudney describes the hills as from 400 to 600 feet in height, the tops being in general tabular, but a few are irregular, and two or three terminate in conical peaks. The sides of all of them are covered with a considerable quantity of debris. Captain Lyon says the chain rises to an elevation of 1500 feet. The lower stratum of these hills is limestone mixed with a reddish day, superimposed upon which are large masses of tabular basalt and irregular precipices, so common to this formation; whilst the sides occasionally present the usual steplike appearance, and in many instances are overhung by pillars, curved, inclined, and perpendicular. The whole exhibits a scene of barrenness which, according to Major Denham, cannot be perfectly described, either by poet or painter. After these dreary wastes have been passed, the hills of Zeghren commence. They run nearly east and west, are low, long, oval, and truncated at the top, and altogether different from any others which Denham and Oudney had seen. The town of Zcghren, according to the former traveller, is better built than any other in Fezzan.

Mourzouk, the capital of Fezzan, which stands in latitude 25. 54. N. and longitude 15. 52. E ., is a walled town, containing about 2500 inhabitants, who are blacks, and who do not, like the Arabs, change their residence. The walls are built of mud, but sufficiently thick and high to guard the place from attack. As a substitute for stones, which are not to be found, the people use baked clay, a substance which is found sufficiently durable, as rain is here unknown. The houses are generally of one story; the doors are low and without hinges, but made to move upon a pivot. The streets are small and narrow, but there are numerous open spaces, destitute of buildings, and covered with sand, on which the camels of the traders remain. Many palms grow in the town, and a few red peppers and onions are cultivated. The street of entrance is a place about a hundred yards broad, leading to the walls which surround the castle, and is extremely elegant. The castle itself is an immense mud edifice, about ninety feet in height, and furnished with small battlements immensely broad at the base, but gradually tapering to about four feet in thickness at the top. Like all the rest of the buildings, the castle has no pretensions to regularity. It is the residence of the sultan, whose apartments are of the best quality, although, on account of the enormous mass of wall, all the rooms are of very small dimensions. The more spacious houses in Mourzouk are constructed in the manner which we shall now endeavour to describe. A large door, sufficiently high to admit a came], opens into a broad passage, in which there is a stable, and near it a room for slaves. Opposite the stable is a large square apartment, the roof of which is supported by palm trees. In the centre of the roof is an open space, through which the apartment is lighted, for al] the houses are destitute of windows. There is generally a divan or seat of mud about eighteen inches high and twelve feet long. From the sides of the large room, doors open into the smaller ones, and a passage leads into a yard which has small houses attached to it, and a well. There are sixteen mosques in Mourzouk, which are covered in, but some of these are very small. The principal one is a low building, destitute of elegance. The burying places are outside the walls, and of considerable extent. Owing to the want of wood, no coffins are used; the bodies are merely wrapped in a mat or linen cloth, and covered with palm branches, over which the earth is thrown. The men of the lower orders of Mourzouk wear a large shirt of white or blue cotton, with long loose sleeves, trousers of the same, and sandals of camel’s hide; but the shirt being in general long, many have no other covering. Those of the better sort, however, attire themselves more gaily; and their dress nearly resembles that of the people of Tripoli. The men have little beard, which they likewise keep closely clipped. The dress of the women here differs materially from that generally worn by Moorish females, and their appearance is by no means prepossessing. They plait their hair in thick bobbins, which hang over the forehead, and anoint it so profusely with oil, that this liquid drips down over the face and clothes. From the back hair, however, ornaments of silver or coral are suspended. Other parts of the face and head, such as the ears, are profusely adorned. A woollen handkerchief is fastened to the back of the head, and falling over, is tied by a leather strap under the chin. A blue shirt is generally worn; and a jereed and red slippers complete their equipment. Some of the better class of women wear trousers, and all adorn their persons according to their rank and importance. Both men and women have a singular custom of stuffing their nostrils with a twisted leaf of onions or clover, which has a very disgusting appearance. The natives have a variety of dances, two or three of which are peculiar to the country. In Mourzouk the luxuries of life are very limited, the people subsisting principally on dates. Many of them do not taste corn for months together; but when obtained, it is made into cakes, which are baked in ovens formed of clay in holes in the earth, and heated by burning wood. Tobacco is very generally chewed by the women, as well as by the men; but smoking is the amusement of a great man only.

The revenues of the sultan of Fezzan arise from slaves, merchandise, and dates. For every slave that enters his dominions he receives two Spanish dollars (in some years the number of slaves amounts to 4000); for a camel’s load of oil or butter, seven dollars; for a load of beads, copper, or hardware, four dollars; and for one of clothing, three dollars. All Arabs who buy dates pay a dollar of duty on each load before they are allowed to remove it; an impost which, at times, is equal to the market price of the article. Above 30 ĴO loads are sold to them annually. Date trees, excepting those of the kadi and Mamelukes, are taxed at the rate of one dollar for every 200. By this duty, in the neighbourhood of Mourzouk, or, more properly, in the few neighbouring villages, the sultan receives yearly about 10,000 dollars. Of all sheep or goats he is entitled to a fifth. On the sale [7:9:532]of every slave he has, in addition to the head money, a dollar and a half, which, at the rate of 4000 slaves annually, gives 6000 dollars. The captured slaves are sold by auction, at which the sultan’s brokers attend, bidding high only for the finest. The trees which are his private property produce about 6000 camel-loads of dates, each of 4001bs. weight, which may be estimated at about 18,000 dollars. Every garden pays a tenth part of the corn produced. The gardens are very small, and are watered with great labour from braekish wells, as rain is unknown, and dews never fall. Pomegranate trees and fig trees are sometimes planted in the water channels. Presents of slaves are frequently made, and fines levied. Each town pays a certain sum, which is small; but as the towns are numerous, the average amount may be estimated at 4000 dollars. Add to this the annual excursions for slaves, sometimes bringing 1000 or 1500, of which one fourth are the sultan’s property, as well as the same proportion of camels. He alone can sell horses, which he buys for five or six dollars, when half starved, from the Arabs, who come to trade, and cannot maintain them, and makes a great profit by obtaining slaves in exchange for them. All his people are fed by the public, and he has no money to pay, excepting to the pasha, which was formerly 15,000 dollars per annum. There are various other modes by which he extorts money. If a man dies childless, the sultan inherits the greater part of his property; and if he thinks it necessary to kill a man, he becomes his sole heir.

In Mourzouk about a tenth part of the population are in a state of slavery. There are some white families, who are denominated Mamlukes, being descended from renegades, whom the pasha had presented to the former sultan. These families and their descendants are considered as noble, and, however poor and humble their situation may be, they are not a little vain of their title.

The general appearance of the men of Fezzan is plain, and their complexion is black; the women are of the same colour, and ugly in the extreme. Neither sex are remarkable for figure, height, strength, vigour, or activity; and they have a very peculiar east of countenance, which distinguishes them from other blacks. But they are a cheerful people, fond of daneing and mnsie, and obliging to each other. The men almost all read and write a little; but in every thing else they are very dull and heavy, their affections being cold and selfish, and a kind of general indifference to the common incidents of life marking all their actions. In Mourzouk the men drink a quantity of lachbi, as also a liquor called busa, which is prepared from dates. The Arabs generally practise hospitality; but amongst the Fezzanese that virtue does not exist. They are, however, very attentive and obsequious to those in whose power they are, or who can repay them tenfold for their pretended disinterestedness. Their religion enjoins that, should a stranger enter whilst they are at their meals, he must be invited to partake; but they generally contrive to evade this injunction by eating with closed doors. The lower classes are, from necessity, very industrious; but amongst people of rank industry is not a characteristie virtue. In regard to morals, they are much upon a level with the people of Tripoli, being both dishonest and insincere. Falsehood is not looked upon as odious unless it be detected.

The lower classes work neatly in leather; they weave a few coarse barracans, and work iron in a solid although clumsy manner. A few likewise work in gold and silver with tolerable skill; and every man is capable of acting as a carpenter or mason. The wood being that of the date tree, and the houses built of mud, very little elegance or skill is required in their construction.

From the constant communication with Bornou and with Soudan, the languages of both these countries are generally spoken, and many of their words are introduced into the Arabic; but the pronunciation is very different from that of the east. Their writing is in the Mogrebyn characters; but they have no idea of arithmetic, and reckon every thing by dots on the sand, ten in a line. Though very fond of poetry, they are incapable of composing it. The Arabs, however, compose a few little songs, which the natives have much pleasure in learning. The women are kept in a state of abject subordination, as is indeed common in all Mahommedan nations. The authority of parents over their children is very great, in faet, unnecessarily despotic. There are no written records of events among the Fezzanese, and their traditions are so disfigured, and so strangely mingled with religious and superstitious falsehoods, that no confidence whatever can be placed in them. Several scriptural passages are selected and believed. The Psalms of David, the Pentateuch, the books of Solomon, and many extracts from the inspired writers, are universally known, and most reverentially considered.

The only towns of any consideration in Fezzan, besides those already described, are Zuela, towards the eastern frontier, on the road to Egypt; Germa, to the west; and Garione, on the road to Bornou. In 1822, Dr Oudneyand Captain Clapperton visited Germa, which lies towards the western frontier. It is a walled town, and surrounded by a ditch. At a little distance from it stands the remains of ancient Germa, which appears to have occupied more space than the modern town. It was formerly the capital of Fezzan, and once gave its name to the nation of the Garamantes; at least, unless there are two places of the same name, this must be the ancient Garama, which is described by Pliny as a fine city, the capital of Fazania. The inhabitants of the modern town are very poor, and many of the houses are in ruins. The aspect of the country between this place and Mourzouk is similar to that of the other portions of Fezzan which we have already described. The hills, which stand about a hundred yards apart, are composed of sandstone, finely interstratified with beds of blue and white pipe-clay and alum slate. There is a valley of considerable dimensions, and also several villages. The number of date trees in the eastern and western divisions of this valley is very great. There is here a town callecl Khraik, situated amidst some fine groves of palm trees, and possessing cultivated patches of ground and wells of good water.

The eastern and southern portions of Fezzan were visited by Captain Lyon. In latitude 25. 55. stands the town öt Traghan, which was formerly a place as considerable as Mourzouk. It is situated in a flat desert plain, with its gardens and date groves at a short distance, and contains four mosques; but most of the houses, which are large, are in ruins, and the population is very trifling. Major Denham says that carpets are manufactured here equal to those of Constantinople. The route to Zuela lies entirely through salt plains and stony deserts, with here and there a small village. Zuela, or Zuila, is situated in latitude 26.11.48. It was formerly a considerable place, but is now only about a mile in circumference. It contains three mosques and three gates, but there are few good houses in it. The inhabitants arê nearly all white; and Captain Lyon observes, that “they are certainly the most respectable, hospitable, and quiet people in Fezzan; and their whole appearance, for they are handsome, and very neatly dressed, bespeaks something superior to the other whites.” At a short distance from Zuela are some very interesting ruins, one of them a castle, which must have been a place of great strength, on account of the immense thickness of the walls. These ruined fabrics have been much commented upon, but there is nothing to prove that they were of Roman origin. The next town of any importance is Gatrone, which stands m latitude 24. 47. 57. The country between Zuela and this [7:9:533]place is a perfect desert, which in one place consists of a singular mixture of sand and salt. Gatrone is rather pleasantly situated. It is surrounded with sand hills and mounds ’ of earth, covered with a small tree called athali. On leaving this place, Captain Lyon proceeded to Tegerhy, the southernmost town in Fezzan, and situated in lat. 24. 4. N. Here the cultivation of the date and palm ceases, and the Arabic gives place to the Bornouese language. The desert comes close to the walls of the town, which is situated to the southward of its palms. The dates are here very fine and plentiful. Tegerhy is commanded by a fort, containing wells of water within the walls. A range of low hills extends to the eastward; and near the town are some salt pools, which are frequented by snipes, wild ducks, and geese. The natives are black, and little superior to savages.

The kingdom of Fczzan is computed to contain about a hundred towns and villages, but the population is thought not to exceed 80,000. It is governed by a sultan, who, although in fact only a viceroy, dependent upon the pasha of Tripoli, possesses absolute sway. In regard to climate, Fezzan cannot be considered as fortunate. In summer the heat is intense, and the south wind, which is very dry, and impregnated with fiery particles, is scarcely supportable even by the natives. The winter, on the other hand, is accompanied with a bleak and penetrating wind blowing from the north, the cold of which is painfully felt even by the natives of a northern climate. Rain falls seldom, and in small quantities; thunder is also rare, but tempests of wind frequently occur. With regard to the soil, we have already spoken at sufficient length. The revenue, as derived from sources already mentioned, is devoted solely to the maintenance of the sultan, his army, and court. The cadi and other officers of justice, the ministers of religion, and even the great officers of state, are maintained from grounds set apart for this purpose, and which are covered usually with gardens, or woods of date trees. The office of cadi or chief judge, to which is also attached that of first minister of religion, is hereditary in a certain family. There is no regular army; but in time of war all who are able to carry arms may be called out.

This country was well known to the ancients under the title of the Phazania Regio, and the country of the Garamantes, whose ancient capital has been recognized by Major Rennell in the modern Germa, as already noticed. The name of Fasan or Fezzan seems to have been imposed by the Saracens, when they overran Northern Africa, and established the Mahommedan faith, and ever since it has continued to prevail.