Travels and discoveries in North and Central Africa : $b Including accounts of Tripoli, the Sahara, the remarkable kingdom of Bornu, and the countries around Lake ChadBarth, Heinrich
History
Travels and discoveries in North and Central Africa : $b Including accounts of Tripoli, the Sahara, the remarkable kingdom of Bornu, and the countries around Lake Chad
Barth, Heinrich
Africa, Central -- Description and travel; Africa, North -- Description and travel
At about ten o’clock we at length moved on, and chose the western of the
two roads, leading hence to Tin-téllust, by way of Fódet; the eastern
one passes through Tágo and Táni. Leaving the large green valley of
Tintagh-odé on our left, we kept on more uneven ground, passing some
smaller glens, till we reached the commencement of the fine broad valley
Fódet, and encamped near the cliffs bordering its eastern side. Here the
water, rushing down from the rocks in a sort of cascade, had formed a
pond, which, however, was not destined to remain long.
_Tuesday, September 3._—We made a very interesting march through a
country marked with bold features, and showing itself in more than one
respect capable of being the abode of man. Turning away from the eastern
border, we kept more along the middle of the valley, till we reached the
most picturesque spot, where it divided into two branches, the eastern
of which, bordered by several imposing mountain spurs, presented a very
interesting perspective, of which the accompanying sketch, drawn as it
was on the back of my camel, will give only a faint idea.
The whole bottom of the valley, where, the day before yesterday, a mighty
torrent had been foaming along, was now glittering with fragments of
minerals. We then passed the ruins of some houses carried away by the
floods, and met further on a little troop of asses laden with éneli. Our
whole caravan was in good spirits; and our escort, in order to give us
a specimen of their horsemanship, if I may so call it, got up a race,
which, as may be readily imagined, proved a very awkward affair. Two or
three of the riders were thrown off, and the sport soon came to an end.
The swift camel is excellent for trotting, but it can never excel in a
gallop. In our ascent we had reached very considerable mountain masses
on our right, when some of our old companions, who had come with us from
Ghát, separated from us, in order to go to their village, Túngadu. Among
these was Ákshi, a very modest and quiet man, who alone of all these
people had never begged from me even the merest trifle, though he gave
me some information, and I might have learnt much more from him if I had
seen him more frequently. But I had the good fortune to meet with him
again at a later period.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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