directly produced two little red and white birds, which he said had come from her. “ What did you do in that poor woman ? she is not young,” said the fighi; “ why perplex her? why did not you come out of her before ?” “ We did not wish to hurt her much,” said the birds; “ but she has been kaffiring, old as she is, and must be punished: there are others in her yet who will not come out so easily; but now, since you are come, she will not die, but she had better take care for the future: we jumped into her when she went to the market; and she knows what she did there.” The poor woman shed an abundance of tears, and acknowledged that she had been a little thoughtless on the preceding market-day. The fighi was rewarded with her best Soudan shift, and they were all made happy at the news of her recovery. October 7.—About three thousand of the sheikh’s spaheia (horsemen) had lately come in from the Tchad, Shary, and the different towns south and west of Angornou, in order that they might undergo a general inspection: their horses were in good condition. An extremely careful inspection took place by the sheikh himself, and punishment was instantly inflicted on any one who had a young horse, if it appeared to have been neglected: but those whose horses were old were excused, and the animal changed. October 8.—A circumstance happened yesterday, which I acknowledge a good deal irritated my feelings. A Tripoli merchant had intrusted to one of the Mesurata a parcel of coral, to take for him to Angornou: it was, however, never forthcoming, and he declared that he had lost it on the road. The Koran law would not, in that case, oblige the loser to make good the loss—a thing lost is God’s will, and nobody’s fault. A servant of the owner, however, unluckily saw the coral afterwards in the Mesurata’s house; the merchant, therefore, appealed to the kadi, as, if he , succeeded in proving this, the value would be recoverable. This servant had been for some time out of employ, and had assisted at our huts during the time that we had so many of our party sick. The kadi took this man’s oath, and was about to decide, when some one said, “ Why, he eats bread and, salt with the Christians.”* “ How!” said the kadi; “ is that true ?” “ Yes,” replied he, “ I have eaten their bread, but it was because no one else would feed me ; but I don't hate them the less for that.” “ Turn him out,” said the - kadi: “ Staffur allah ! God forbid that any one who has eaten with Christians should give justice by the laws of Mahommed!” His evidence was accordingly refused, and the merchant lost his cause. A Bor- nouese, a friend of mine, who was present, asked the kadi, with much simplicity, whether really these Christians were such bad people: “ they seem kind,” said h e ; “ and if they are so very bad, why does God suffer them to be so rich, and to know things so much better than we do ?” ji Don’t talk about them,” said the kadi, “ don’t talk about them—please God, those who are here will die Mislem: as to their riches, let them enjoy them. God allows them the good things of this world, but to Mislem he has given paradise and eternity.” “ Geree ! geree /” (true ! tru e !) was re-echoed from each; and the fatah was immediately recited aloud. We had now received intelligence that the kaflla which had left this place from Mourzuk, nearly a month since, was detained at Woodie, in consequence of the Tibboos having filled the wells between that place and Billma. Such of the Arabs as remained of our escort, after their return from Munga, left Kouka with the first kaflla for Tripoli: they were all my professed friends; but, notwithstanding the miserable state in which they were, I had not the means of assisting them ; the few dollars each man had received from the bashaw on quitting Tripoli, and all they possessed besides, being lost at Mandara, and they knew I was precisely in the same situation. One man in three or four sold his gun, an Arab’s greatest treasure, to provide them with water, skins, and corn, for their journey. Added to this, they were all weakened by sickness and wounds :
27f 24
To see the actual publication please follow the link above