Celebrated Travels and Travellers, Part 3.: The Great Explorers of the Nineteenth CenturyVerne, Jules
History
Celebrated Travels and Travellers, Part 3.: The Great Explorers of the Nineteenth Century
Verne, Jules
Discoveries in geography; Explorers; Voyages and travels
South of Katagoum is the Yacoba country, called Mouchy by the
Mahommedans. According to accounts received by Clapperton, the people
of Yacoba, which is shut in by limestone mountains, are cannibals. The
Mahommedans, however, who have an intense horror of the "Kaffirs," give
no other proof of this accusation than the statement that they have
seen human heads and limbs hanging against the walls of the houses.
In Yacoba rises the Yeou, a river which dries up completely in the
summer; but, according to the people who live on its banks, rises and
falls regularly every week throughout the rainy season.
On the 11th of January, the journey was resumed; but a halt had to be
made at Murmur at noon of the same day, as Oudney showed signs of such
extreme weakness and exhaustion, that Clapperton feared he could not
last through another day. He had been gradually failing ever since they
left the mountains of Obarri in Fezzan, where he had inflammation of
the throat from sitting in a draught when over-heated.
On the 12th of January, Oudney took a cup of coffee at daybreak, and at
his request Clapperton changed camels with him. He then helped him to
dress, and leaning on his servant, the doctor left the tent. He was
about to attempt to mount his camel, when Clapperton saw death in his
face. He supported him back to the tent, where to his intense grief, he
expired at once, without a groan or any sign of suffering. Clapperton
lost no time in asking the governor's permission to bury his comrade;
and this being obtained, he dug a grave for him himself under an old
mimosa-tree near one of the gates of the town. After the body had been
washed according to the custom of the country, it was wrapped in some
of the turban shawls which were to have served as presents on the
further journey; the servants carried it to its last resting-place, and
Clapperton read the English burial service at the grave. When the
ceremony was over, he surrounded the modest resting-place with a wall
of earth, to keep off beasts of prey, and had two sheep killed, which
he divided amongst the poor.
Thus closed the career of the young naturalist and ship's doctor,
Oudney. His terrible malady, whose germs he had brought with him from
England, had prevented him from rendering so much service to the
expedition as the Government had expected from him, although he never
spared himself, declaring that he felt better on the march, than when
resting. Knowing that his weakened constitution would not admit of any
sustained exertion on his part, he would never damp the ardour of his
companions.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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