APPENDIX. No. II.
Reading edition
Translations of a Manuscript descriptive of Mr. Park’s Death.
Mr. Salame’s Translation.
[The words in italics, so distinguished at that Gentleman’s request, not being in the original.]
A literal translation of a Declaration, written in a corrupted Arabic, from the town of Yaúd in the interior of Africa.
In the name of God the Merciful and the Munificent.
This Declaration is issued from the town called[145] Yaúd in the Country of Kossa[146].—We (the writer,) do witness the following case; (statement.) We never saw, nor heard of the sea (River) called[148] Koodd; but we sat to hear (understood) the voice (report) of some persons saying, “We saw a ship, equal to her we never saw before; and the King of Yaúd had sent plenty of every kind of food, with cows and sheep; There were two men, one woman, two male slaves and two maids in the ship;[149] The two white men were derived from the race (sect) of Nassrí; (Christ or Christianity.) The King of Yaúd asked them to come out to him; (to land[150]; and they refused coming out, (landing,) and they went to the King of the Country of[151] Bassa, who is greater than the King of Yaúd; And while they were sitting in the ship and gaining a position (rounding) over the Cape of Koodd, and were in society with the people of the King of Bassa, the ship reached (struck) a-head of Mountain which took (destroyed) her away,[152] and the men and women of Bassa all together, with every kind of arms; (goods); And the ship could find no way to avoid the mountain; And the man who was in the ship, killed his wife, and threw all his property into the Sea, (River), and then they threw themselves also from fear[153]: Afterwards they took one out of the water till the news reached the town of Kanji,[154] the country of the King of Wawí, and the King of Wawí heard of it, he buried him in his earth, (grave), and the other we have not seen[155]; perhaps he is in the bottom of the water.”—And God knows best. Authentic from the mouth of Sherif Abrahim.—Finis.
Mr. Jackson’s Translation.
[Of this Gentleman’s considerate politeness in anticipating my wishes by a spontaneous offer to translate this MS., I shall have occasion to repeat my acknowledgments in the Geographical Appendix.]
In the name of God the Merciful and Clement.
This Narrative proceeds from the territory in Housa[146] called[145] Eeauree. We observed an extraordinary event or circumstance[147], but we neither saw nor heard of the River which is called[148] Kude, and as we were sitting, we heard the voice of children and we saw a vessel the like to which in size we never saw before; and, we saw the King of Eeauree send cattle and sheep, and a variety of vegetables in great abundance: and there were two men and one woman, and two slaves, and they tied or fastened them in the vessel.[149]
There were also in the vessel, two white men of the race called Christians (N’sarrah) and the Sultan of Eeauree called aloud to them to come out of the vessel,[150] but they would not.
They proceeded to the country of Busa, which is greater than that of the Sultan of Eeauree, and as they were setting in the vessel, they hung or were stopped, by the Cape or Head Land of Kude.[151]
And the people of the Sultan of Busa called to them, and poured their arms into the vessel, and the vessel reached the head-land or cliff, and became attached or fixed to the head of the mountain, and could not pass it. Then the men and women of Busa collected themselves hostilely together, with arms of all descriptions, when the vessel being unable to clear or pass the Cape, the man in the vessel killed his wife[153] and threw the whole of her property into the river: they then threw themselves into the river, fear seizing them (the news of this occurrence was then conveyed to the Sultan Wawee) until it reached by water the territory of Kanjee,[154] in the country of the Sultan Wawee, and we buried it (a male body) in its earth, and one of them, we saw not at all in the water,[155] and God knows the truth of this report. From the mouth of the Shereef Ibrahim.—The end.
I have sent the original MS. to the African Association, the following is Mr. Jackson’s transcript of it. I regret that Mr. Salamé did not also furnish a transcript of this MS.
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
هذه الوثيقه خرج من بلد حوسا يقال يَور ونحن راينا الامر لم نري ولانسمع في البحر الذي يقال كوض انما نحن جلسنا نسمع صاخ صبيان لرايت السفينه لم نري مثله قط فارسل سلطان يَور لرايته مع البقر والكبس مع انواع الطعام كثيرِ هما رجلان وامراة واحدة والعبدان وعقدان في السفينة رجلان بيضان خرجوا من نسب نصري ويدعوهو سلطان يور الي ان خرجوا اليه وابوا خروج ومشوا الي بلد بسا وهوا كبر من سلطان يور وهم يجلسون ويعلكون ملوك علي راس كُوض ويصاخور اهل سلطان بُسا لرايته وهم ركوب في السفينة بلغ السفينة راس جبل وياخد الجبل السفينة ورجال بُسا والنساه بسا يجمعون كلهم مع انواع السلاح والسفينة لم يجد طريق المنع الجبل ورجل الدي في السفينة قتل امراته ورمي ماله كله في البحر ورموا نفسهما في البحر لخوف ثم ياخدوا بلغ خبر الي سلطان واوي حتي بلغ ماه به الي بلد كنجي بلد سلطان وَاوَيَ ودفنه في قرابه وواحد منهما لم نره اقل في قهر الماه والله اعلم صح في فَم شريف اِبراهيم * تمت*