He Would
Therefore Advise Me To Return Into Kasson, And Remain There Until The War
Should Terminate, Which Would Probably
Happen in the course of three or
four months; after which, if he was alive, he said, he would be
Glad to
see me, and if he was dead, his sons would take care of me.
This advice was certainly well meant on the part of the king; and perhaps
I was to blame in not following it; but I reflected that the hot months
were approaching; and I dreaded the thoughts of spending the rainy season
in the interior of Africa. These considerations, and the aversion I felt
at the idea of returning without having made a greater progress in
discovery, made me determine to go forwards; and though the king could
not give me a guide to Bambarra, I begged that he would allow a man to
accompany me as near the frontiers of his kingdom as was consistent with
safety. Finding that I was determined to proceed, the king told me that
one route still remained, but that, he said, was by no means free from
danger; which was to go from Kaarta into the Moorish kingdom of Ludamar,
from whence I might pass, by a circuitous route, into Bambarra. If I
wished to follow this route, he would appoint people to conduct me to
Jarra, the frontier town of Ludamar. He then enquired very particularly
how I had been treated since I had left the Gambia, and asked in a
jocular way how many slaves I expected to carry home with me on my
return. He was about to proceed, when a man mounted on a fine Moorish
horse, which was covered with sweat and foam, entered the court, and
signifying that he had something of importance to communicate, the king
immediately took up his sandals, which is the signal to strangers to
retire. I accordingly took leave, but desired my boy to stay about the
place, in order to learn something of the intelligence that this
messenger had brought. In about an hour the boy returned, and informed me
that the Bambarra army had left Fooladoo, and was on its march towards
Kaarta; that the man I had seen, who had brought this intelligence, was
one of the scouts or watchmen employed by the king, each of whom has his
particular station, (commonly on some rising ground,) from whence he has
the best view of the country, and watches the motions of the enemy.
In the evening the king sent me a fine sheep; which was very acceptable,
as none of us had tasted victuals during the day. Whilst we were employed
in dressing supper, evening prayers were announced; not by the call of
the priest, as usual, but by beating on drums, and blowing through large
elephants' teeth, hollowed out in such a manner as to resemble
bugle-horns; the sound is melodious, and, in my opinion, comes nearer to
the human voice than any other artificial sound. As the main body of
Daisy's army was, at this juncture, at Kemmoo, the mosques were very much
crowded; and I observed that the disciples of Mahomet composed nearly one
half of the army of Kaarta.
Feb. 13th. At daylight I sent my horse-pistols and holsters as a present
to the king, and being very desirous to get away from a place which was
likely soon to become the seat of war, I begged the messenger to inform
the king, that I wished to depart from Kemmoo as soon as he should find
it convenient to appoint me a guide. In about an hour the king sent his
messenger to thank me for the present, and eight horsemen to conduct me
to Jarra. They told me that the king wished me to proceed to Jarra with
all possible expedition, that they might return before any thing decisive
should happen between the armies of Bambarra and Kaarta; we accordingly
departed forthwith from Kemmoo, accompanied by three of Daisy's sons, and
about two hundred horsemen, who kindly undertook to see me a little way
on my journey.
CHAPTER VIII.
_Journey from Kemmoo to Funingkedy. - Some account of the Lotus. - A youth
murdered by the Moors - interesting scene at his death. - Author passes
through Simbing. - Some particulars concerning Major Houghton, - Author
reaches Jarra - situation of the surrounding states at the period of his
arrival there, and a brief account of the war between Kaarta and
Bambarra._
On the evening of the day of our departure from Kemmoo, (the king's
eldest son and great part of the horsemen having returned,) we reached a
village called Marina, where we slept. During the night some thieves
broke into the hut where I had deposited my baggage, and having cut open
one of my bundles, stole a quantity of beads, part of my clothes, and
some amber and gold; which happened to be in one of the pockets. I
complained to my protectors, but without effect. The next day (Feb. 14th)
was far advanced before we departed from Marina, and we travelled slowly,
on account of the excessive heat, until four o'clock in the afternoon,
when two Negroes were observed sitting among some thorny bushes at a
little distance from the road. The king's people, taking it for granted
that they were runaway slaves, cocked their muskets, and rode at full
speed in different directions through the bushes, in order to surround
them, and prevent their escaping. The Negroes, however, waited with great
composure until we came within bowshot of them, when each of them took
from his quiver a handful of arrows, and putting two between his teeth,
and one in his bow, waved to us with his hand to keep at a distance upon
which one of the king's people called out to the strangers to give some
account of themselves. They said that "they were natives of Toorda, a
neighbouring village, and had come to that place to gather _tomberongs_."
These are small farinaceous berries, of a yellow colour and delicious
taste, which I knew to be the fruit of the _rhamnus lotus_ of Linnaeus.
The Negroes showed us two large baskets full, which they had collected in
the course of the day.
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