Ali Was
Very Desirous To Be Informed, Why That Small Piece Of Iron, The Needle,
Always Pointed To The Great Desert, And I Found Myself Somewhat Puzzled
To Answer The Question.
To have pleaded my ignorance, would have created
a suspicion that I wished to conceal the real truth from
Him; I therefore
told him, that my mother resided far beyond the sands of Sahara, and that
whilst she was alive, the piece of iron would always point that way, and
serve as a guide to conduct me to her, and that if she was dead, it would
point to her grave. Ali now looked at the compass with redoubled
amazement; turned it round and round repeatedly; but observing that it
always pointed the same way, he took it up with great caution and
returned it to me, manifesting that he thought there was something of
magic in it, and that he was afraid of keeping so dangerous an instrument
in his possession.
March 20th. This morning a council of chief men was held in Ali's tent
respecting me; their decisions, though they were all unfavourable to me,
were differently related by different persons. Some said that they
intended to put me to death; others, that I was only to lose my right
hand: but the most probable account was that which I received from Ali's
own son, a boy about nine years of age, who came to me in the evening,
and, with much concern, informed me that his uncle had persuaded his
father to put out my eyes, which they said resembled those of a cat, and
that all the Bushreens had approved of this measure. His father, however,
he said, would not put the sentence into execution until Fatima the
queen, who was at present in the north, had seen me.
March 21st. Anxious to know my destiny, I went to the king early in the
morning: and as a number of Bushreens were assembled, I thought this a
favourable opportunity of discovering their intentions. I therefore began
by begging his permission to return to Jarra, which was flatly refused;
his wife, he said, had not yet seen me, and I must stay until she came to
Benowm, after which I should be at liberty to depart; and that my horse,
which had been taken away from me the day after I arrived should be again
restored to me. Unsatisfactory as this answer was, I was forced to appear
pleased: and as there was little hopes of making my escape, at this
season of the year, on account of the excessive heat, and the total want
of water in the woods, I resolved to wait patiently until the rains had
set in, or until some more favourable opportunity should present
itself; - but _hope deferred maketh the heart sick_. This tedious
procrastination from day to day, and the thoughts of travelling through
the Negro kingdoms in the rainy season, which was now fast approaching,
made me very melancholy; and having passed a restless night, I found
myself attacked, in the morning, by a smart fever. I had wrapped myself
close up in my cloak, with a view to induce perspiration, and was asleep
when a party of Moors entered the hut, and with their usual rudeness
pulled the cloak from me. I made signs to them that I was sick, and
wished much to sleep; but I solicited in vain; my distress was matter of
sport to them, and they endeavoured to heighten it by every means in
their power. This studied and degrading insolence, to which I was
constantly exposed, was one of the bitterest ingredients in the cup of
captivity; and often made life itself a burthen to me. In those
distressing moments I have frequently envied the situation of the slave,
who, amidst all his calamities, could still possess the enjoyment of his
own thoughts; a happiness to which I had, for some time, been a stranger.
Wearied out with such continual insults, and perhaps a little peevish
from the fever, I trembled lest my passion might unawares overleap the
bounds of prudence, and spur me to some sudden act of resentment, when
death must be the inevitable consequence. In this perplexity, I left my
hut, and walked to some shady trees at a little distance from the camp,
where I lay down. But even here persecution followed me; and solitude was
thought too great an indulgence for a distressed Christian. Ali's son,
with a number of horsemen, came galloping to the place, and ordered me to
rise and follow them. I begged they would allow me to remain where I was,
if it was only for a few hours; but they paid little attention to what I
said; and after a few threatening words, one of them pulled out a pistol
from a leather bag, that was fastened to the pummel of his saddle, and
presenting it towards me, snapped it twice. He did this with so much
indifference, that I really doubted whether the pistol was loaded; he
cocked it a third time, and was striking the flint with a piece of steel,
when I begged them to desist, and returned with them to the camp. When we
entered Ali's tent, we found him much out of humour. He called for the
Moor's pistol, and amused himself for some time with opening and shutting
the pan; at length, taking up his powder horn, he fresh primed it; and
turning round to me with a menacing look, said something in Arabic, which
I did not understand. I desired my boy, who was sitting before the tent,
to inquire what offence I had committed; when I was informed that having
gone out of the camp without Ali's permission, they suspected that I had
some design of making my escape; and that, in future, if I was seen
without the skirts of the camp, orders had been given that I should be
shot by the first person that observed me.
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