Travels in the Great Desert of Sahara, in the Years of 1845 and 1846Richardson, James
History
Travels in the Great Desert of Sahara, in the Years of 1845 and 1846
Richardson, James
Sahara -- Description and travel
After taking leave of Gameo, I waited for Mohammed and Said; we had gone
on quickly with the donkeys. They came up with the camels, but instead of
encamping within the village, the ghafalah had brought up outside. This
annoyed Mohammed, who kept exclaiming, as we went to the rendezvous of
the merchants, "Ah! Gameo, that's him, Gameo, Gameo! What trouble he has
brought upon us, Gameo! Gameo! he a tabeeb? Not fit to give physic to a
dog. Gameo! Gameo! always talking--always talking; the devil take him,
for he's his son." We reached the encampment as the shadows of night
fell fast; we did not take supper, or pitch tent. My spirits gave way,
and I felt fearful and saddened at the prospect of going into the
interior absolutely alone. I had not a single letter of recommendation to
any one, after waiting so long at Tripoli, and so much talk with all
sorts of people about the necessity of having letters for the chiefs of
The Desert. This was, indeed, bad management; yet I could not insist upon
the Pasha giving me a letter, nor could I importune the British Consul:
but it often happens, where there is less help from man, there is more
from God. Many of the Ghadamsee merchants, whose acquaintance I had made
in Tripoli, came now to me and welcomed me as a fellow-traveller. Janzour
is a small village, with gardens of olives and date plantations.
_August 3rd._--Before starting to-day, it is necessary to give some
account of my equipment. I had two camels on hire, for which I paid
twelve dollars. I was to ride one continually. We had panniers on it, in
which I stowed away about two months' provisions. A little fresh
provision we were to purchase _en route_. Upon these panniers a mattress
was placed, forming with them a comfortable platform. As a luxury, I had
a Moorish pillow for leaning on, given me by Mr. Frederick Warrington.
The camel was neither led nor reined, but followed the group. I myself
was dressed in light European clothes, and furnished with an umbrella for
keeping off the sun. This latter was all my arms of offence and defence.
The other camel carried a trunk and some small boxes, cooking utensils,
and matting, and a very light tent for keeping off sun and heat. We had
two gurbahs, or "skin-bags for water," and another we were to buy in the
mountains, so each having a skin of water to himself. Said was to ride
this camel, and now and then give a ride to Mohammed the camel-driver, to
whom the camels belonged. We were roused before daylight. I made coffee
with my spirit apparatus (_spiriterio_). In half an hour after the dawn,
we were all on the move, and soon started. The ghafalah presented an
interminable line of camels, as it wound its slow way through narrow
sandy lanes, hedged on each side with the cactus or prickly-pear. We
progressed very irregularly, and the camels kept throwing off their
burdens. The Moors and Arabs, who manage almost everything badly, even
hardly know how to manage their camels, after ages of experience. It is,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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