I had quickly thrown every life-buoy into the river, as Howarti,
Mohammed, and others of the best swimmers had vainly plunged after Ali,
and were now searching fruitlessly for his body, carried away by the
powerful current. The boat was sent after them immediately, and they
were brought on board.
The mirth of the diahbeeah had vanished; the general favourite had so
suddenly disappeared from among us, that no one spoke, The women sat
down and cried.
His knapsack and rifle were brought to me, and a list having been taken
of his clothes and ammunition, I cut his name, "Ali," upon the stock of
his snider, which I reserved for the best man I should be able to
select. There was no better epitaph for so good a soldier than his name
engraved on his trusty rifle.
That evening every one was sad, and my people all refused their
food. . . .
On the following day, the wind and stream being adverse, we had much
trouble in avoiding the sand-banks, and our progress was so slow that we
only reached the base of the rocky hill Regiaf. Here I resolved to wait
for the heavier vessels, which were far behind.
The natives were now friendly, and on the 25th January, Lieutenant Baker
accompanied me to the summit of Regiaf to take observations of compass
bearings of all the various mountains and prominent points of the
country.
At the western base of Regiaf there is a very curious rock supported
upon a pedestal, that forms a gigantic table.
This great slab of syenite is one of many that have detached and fallen
as the original mountain decomposed.
I obtained my measuring tape from the diahbeeah, which gave the
following results: -
Feet. Inches.
Length of slab . . . . . . . . . 45 4
Breadth of slab . . . . . . . . 45 8
Thickness of slab . . . . . . . 4 9
Height from ground . . . . . . . 10 5
Circumference of clay pedestal . 69 0
This rock must have chanced to fall upon a mass of extremely hard clay.
The denudation of the sloping surface, caused by the heavy rains of many
centuries, must be equal to the present height of the clay pedestal, as
all the exterior has been washed away and the level reduced. The clay
pedestal is the original earth, which, having been protected from the
weather by the stone roof, remains intact.
The Baris seemed to have some reverence for this stone, and we were told
that it was dangerous to sleep beneath it, as many people who had tried
the experiment had died.
I believe this superstition is simply the result of some old legends
concerning the death of a person who may have been killed in his sleep,
by a stone that probably detached and fell from the under surface of the
slab.
I examined the rock carefully, and found many pieces that gave warning
of scaling off. Several large flakes, each weighing some hundredweight,
lay beneath the table rock,-upon the under surface of which could be
distinctly traced the mould of the detached slab.
On 27th January, we arrived with all the vessels at the foot of the
cataracts, in N. lat. 4 degrees 38'. This is a very lovely spot, as the
rocky islands are covered with rich, green forest; the verdure being
perpetual, as the roots of the trees are well nourished by water.
Our old friend Bedden met us with a number of his people, and came on
board the diahbeeah. He professed to be quite ready to convey our
baggage to the south, and I proposed that his people should go as far as
Lobore, about sixty miles from this spot, where I knew we could procure
carriers, as during my former journey the natives of Lobore were the
only people who could be depended upon.
Bedden seemed determined to help us, and I really believed that our luck
had arrived at last, and that I should be able to convey the carts,
together with the steamer, to the navigable portion of the Nile in N.
lat. 3 degrees 32'.
I determined to be very civil to the great sheik, Bedden; I therefore
arranged with him that the work should be entirely in his hands, and
that he should represent the government as my vakeel. At the same time,
I gave him a grand cloak of purple and silver tissue, together with a
tin helmet, and turban of cobalt-blue serge; also a looking-glass, and a
quantity of beads of various colours.
The country was dried up, and there was only scant herbage for my large
herd of cattle, the half of which I promised to give Bedden if he would
carry our baggage to Lobore.
The sheik returned to his village to make arrangements with his people
for the journey.
Somehow or other, as he took leave and marched off in his grand cloak of
silver and purple, I had certain misgivings of his sincerity.
Although great numbers of natives thronged the country, and came down to
the vessels, there was not one woman or child. The absence of women and
children is a sure sign of evil intentions. My wife, whose experience
was equal to my own, at once expressed her suspicions. Had the natives
been honest and sincere, their women would assuredly have come to visit
her from simple curiosity.
Not only was there an absence of women and children, but the cattle had
been driven from the country. There were several small cattle zareebas
within half a mile of the vessels, situated upon the high ground. I went
to visit them, as though simply strolling for my amusement; the dung of
cattle was fresh, showing that the zareebas had been occupied during the
past night, but the herd had evidently been driven far away.
Bedden's people had never been attacked by the slave-traders, as his
tribe was considered too powerful; he had therefore no cause for
suspicion.
