for themselves, and such I considered was Sumunter’s
dodge now.
8 th November.—This morning the sultan, having
now recovered, came to return my salaam of the previous,
evening, when I opened to him the purport .of
my expedition in minute detail: how I wished to visit
the Southern Dulbahantas, cross and inspect the Wadi
Nogal, and thence proceed west to meet my friends,
Stroyan and Herne, at Berbera. He listened very
attentively and politely, but at the conclusion repeated
the words I had already heard; adding that the Dulbahantas
had intestine wars; they had been fighting
many years, and were now in hot strife, dividing the
government of their country. Not many days since
a report had arrived that the southern portion of them,
who occupied the countries about one hundred miles
due south of Bunder Heis, had had a fight with the
northern ones, who were living on the same meridian,
immediately to their northward, and had succeeded in
capturing 2000 horses, 400 camels, a great number of
sheep and goats, and had wounded one man severely :
it was therefore impossible I could go from the northern
division to the southern, for I should be treated as
an enemy; and that was the only line on which water
could be found during this, the dry season. Had I
come here during the monsoon, I might have travelled
directly in a diagonal line, from the south of the
mountain-range to the rear of this place, into their,
the southerners’, country, who were the older branch,
and were now governed by the hereditary and rightful
chief, Gerad Mahamed Ali, who was on the most
friendly terms with the Warsingali, and who, being
an old chief, and well respected by his adherent subjects,
might have granted me a hospitable reception.
On the other hand, the northern Dulbahantas, who
were also friendly with the Warsingali, were under no
control: the Gerad, by name Mahamed Ali also, was
recently installed in government, and was consequently
very little respected. He (the Warsingali chief) could
not, therefore, give his sanction to my going amongst
them, by which my life would be endangered, and he,
for permitting it, would be held responsible by the
English. No arguments of mine would alter the
decision of the inflexible chief; I therefore changed
the subject by asking him to assist me in procuring
camels, by which I might go into the interior, and feel
my way thereafter. This he readily agreed to, and
begged permission to return to Bunder Gori to give
the necessary orders to his subjects. His escort then
demanded a cloth apiece from me, to be given them
for their trouble in coming over here; arguing that,
had I not required the sultan’s attendance, they would
not have had to come;—a plausible, but truly Somali
notion of justice; they knew their proper master would
give them nothing for coming to support his dignity,
but thought I might be softer.
10 th.—The sultan, not able to do business hurriedly
with his rabble subjects, did not appear again until
this morning, and then, instead of proceeding at once
to work, hinted he should like to have the presents I