Travels in the Interior of Africa — Volume 01Park, Mungo
History
Travels in the Interior of Africa — Volume 01
Park, Mungo
Africa -- Discovery and exploration; Niger River
_July_ 7.—In the morning, when I was about to depart, my landlord, with a
great deal of diffidence, begged me to give him a lock of my hair. He
had been told, he said, that white men’s hair made a saphie that would
give to the possessor all the knowledge of white men. I had never before
heard of so simple a mode of education, but instantly complied with the
request.
I reached a small town called Wassiboo, about twelve o’clock, where I was
obliged to stop until an opportunity should offer of procuring a guide to
Satilé, which is distant a very long day’s journey, through woods without
any beaten path. I accordingly took up my residence at the dooty’s
house, where I stayed four days, during which time I amused myself by
going to the fields with the family to plant corn. Cultivation is
carried on here on a very extensive scale; and, as the natives themselves
express it, “Hunger is never known.” In cultivating the soil the men and
women work together. They use a large sharp hoe, much superior to that
used in Gambia, but they are obliged, for fear of the Moors, to carry
their arms with them to the field. The master, with the handle of his
spear, marks the field into regular plats, one of which is assigned to
every three slaves.
On the evening of the 11th eight of the fugitive Kaartans arrived at
Wassiboo. They had found it impossible to live under the tyrannical
government of the Moors, and were now going to transfer their allegiance
to the King of Bambarra. They offered to take me along with them as far
as Satilé, and I accepted the offer.
_July_ 12.—At daybreak we set out, and travelled with uncommon expedition
until sunset. We stopped only twice in the course of the day, once at a
watering-place in the woods, and at another time at the ruins of a town
formerly belonging to Daisy, called _Illa-compe_ (the corn-town). When
we arrived in the neighbourhood of Satilé, the people who were employed
in the corn-fields, seeing so many horsemen, took us for a party of
Moors, and ran screaming away from us. The whole town was instantly
alarmed, and the slaves were seen in every direction driving the cattle
and horses towards the town. It was in vain that one of our company
galloped up to undeceive them; it only frightened them the more; and when
we arrived at the town we found the gates shut, and the people all under
arms. After a long parley we were permitted to enter, and, as there was
every appearance of a tornado, the dooty allowed us to sleep in his
_baloon_, and gave us each a bullock’s hide for a bed.
_July_ 13.—Early in the morning we again set forward. The roads were wet
and slippery, but the country was very beautiful, abounding with
rivulets, which were increased by the rain into rapid streams. About ten
o’clock we came to-the ruins of a village which had been destroyed by war
about six months before.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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