APPENDIX. (continued 2)

3rd. Saláng, a village inhabited by pagans of dark black colour, in a mountainous district. Cross, about noon, the Bénuwé, which is here already a considerable river, although I have been unable to learn any thing more accurate about its upper course, excepting that it is supposed to issue, at some day’s distance towards the south or S.S.E., from a great mountain with a large volume of water. Arrive between four and five o’clock P.M.

4th. Sleep in the wilderness.

5th. Báya, the principal place of the district or country of the same name. It lies in the midst between a forest and the mountains, and is said to be of the same size as Ngáundere (see further on). It is the residence of a chief named Báushi (a nickname?), who is under the supremacy of the governor of Búndang. The dwellings are all huts. The place has no market. The inhabitants go naked, with no covering but a leaf. They tattoo their bodies in undulating lines, and make a small hole in the left nostril; they have asses, sheep, and poultry in abundance, but neither horses nor neat-cattle; they catch elephants, which are very numerous, in pits, and feed on their flesh. Plenty of parrots. Much dukhn or Pennisetum is cultivated, while the banana is the principal fruit. The sexes observe a distinction with regard to food, the women abstaining from fowls—perhaps on the same principle as the women, in some parts of India, are prohibited to eat things which are regarded as delicacies. They have no cotton, but use shells as money. The only weapons of the people are wooden spears, which they do not poison. The Báya are evidently identical with Koelle’s and Dr. Baikie’s Bayong. The former of these two gentlemen has placed these people at far too great a distance into the interior.

ii. From Yóla to Báya by way of Gúrin.

1st day. Gúrin (see above), the former residence of the Púllo ruler of Ádamáwa.

2nd. Lamórde, a considerable place, inhabited by pagans[173]; arrive between one and two o’clock P.M. The road lies along the east bank of the river Fáro, which is crossed, on first setting out from Gúrin, by a ford in the dry season, but in a boat during the rains. The country plain; mountains in the distance. You then turn a little west from south. On the west side of the river is Chámba, a large place situated at the foot of Mount Alantíka, and inhabited by Fúlbe, the residence of Ámba Sámbo.

3rd. A village of the pagan Búte, between one and two o’clock P.M. The country is mountainous on both sides of the road, the Fáro being some distance off towards the west. As is the case throughout Ádamáwa, there is here abundance of honey.

4th. A Púllo village situated on a river running N.W. into the Fáro, and called máyo Koléjo. Here resides a petty governor called Ardo Mohammed; the whole country is mountainous. The inhabitants maintain that the soil contains gold, but that they do not know how to collect it. Arrive between one and two o’clock P.M.

5th. A pagan village, situated in the midst of separate groups of mountains, and governed by a chief called Njaréndi. The whole country is under cultivation, the crops consisting in dukhn, durra, ground-nuts, and cotton. Arrive between four and five o’clock P.M.

6th. A Púllo village, the residence (jóro) of the chief Kábdu, and therefore called “Jóro Kábdu.” The country through which the road lies is mountainous; and its inhabitants are pagans, but of very handsome figure.

7th. Pass the night among the pagan slaves of the Fúlbe (Rúmde Ngáundere); arrive towards sunset.

8th. Ngáundere, a place of considerable size for this country, said to be about as large as Gúmmel in Bórnu, and surrounded with a low rampart; the dwellings are built entirely of reeds, with the exception of the house of the governor and the mosque, the former being built of clay, and the latter of clay and reeds. A daily market is held. Arrive a little before noon.

9th. A slave village (rúmde) of the slaves of the Ardo, in a mountainous country, with watercourses in the valley. Arrive between one and two o’clock P.M.

10th. Another pagan village; many small hamlets scattered about.

11th. A village of the Mbúm, a large tribe of pagans, well-proportioned, who tattoo their bodies, make cuts in the chin, and file the teeth to a point. They live partly in the valley and partly on the top of the mountains.

12th. Báya.

iii. From Chámba to Báya, preceded by an itinerary from Yóla and Kóncha to Chámba.

1st day. Máibatí (Máyo Béti), a Pullo village situated on a small rivulet called máyo Béti, and joining the Fáro.

2nd. Lamórde, the place mentioned in the preceding itinerary, situated on the river Fáro.

N.B. It seems almost as if Gúrin had been accidentally omitted in this itinerary; at least, the place where the river is crossed cannot be far distant from that town. The road keeps awhile along the bank of the river; fine country; mountains only at some distance from the road.

3rd. Chámba, a considerable place, in a fine position, bordered by the river Fáro towards the east, and by the offshoots of Mount Alantíka towards the west, from which however it seems to be separated by a smaller stream. Mount Alantíka, which forms a gigantic mountain mass, is densely inhabited by pagans of the tribe of the Bátta, who are governed by seven different chiefs, and supply themselves with iron from Mount Kárin, lying on the east side of the river, half a day’s journey from Lamórde; mountains are seen all around. Chámba is almost exclusively inhabited by Fúlbe, and is the residence of the powerful governor Ámba Sámbo, a very warlike man, but now rather old. Chámba is three days’ journey from Kóncha, in starting from which place you pass the first night in Láro, the second in the town of Yáji (the mighty ancestor of Ámba Sámbo), and on the third reach Chámba. This road keeps along a river, which you have to cross twice, but with regard to the identity of which with the Déve I am not quite certain.

iv. From Chámba to Báya by a western road.

1st day. Lamórde, the place mentioned above, having crossed the river Fáro immediately on setting out.

2nd. Gabdómana, a pagan village, with a rúmde; the name probably has some connection with that of the chief Kábdo or Gábdo.

3rd. Encamp in the wilderness.

4th. Bére, a pagan village on the top of a hill, and at a short distance northward a village inhabited by Kánembú and Kanúri. The country is intersected by small rivulets.

5th. Rúmde Ngáundere, a small slave-village.

6th. Ngáundere, the principal place in the country of the Mbúm, surrounded by a low wall, and containing a few houses of clay, and the residence or jóro of Hámed, who governs the country as far as Búndang, and is said to be able to bring 500 horse into the field. It is situated at the western foot of a hill, while towards the west there rises another hill. The people unanimously state that the place is situated exactly south from Chámba. The country produces Sorghum vulgare, a peculiar sort of sorghum called mathá, rice, and cotton.

7th. Katíl, in a mountainous district. During the first part of this day’s march, the direction being S.E., the river, which runs here from east to west, is close on the right of the traveller; it is called Máyo Nélbi, and joined by another smaller one, called Njárang. During the latter part of the rainy season even here it can be crossed only in boats. However, this is not the direct road, but a great circuit; a traveller who follows the direct road from Bére arrives in one day at Katíl, after a march of about nine hours, direction south.

8th. Yángaré, a pagan village in a mountainous country, near a rivulet which joins the Fáro; a very long day’s journey.

9th. Yére, a pagan village of another tribe, in a wide plain destitute of trees and intersected with rivulets; arrive about noon.

10th. Principal place of Báya, which the informant of this route, Mʿallem Katúri, represents as a country mountainous towards the east, but entirely level towards the west. This last day’s march from Yére is a very long one; and people generally pass the night on the road, and enter Báya the following morning.

v. From Kóncha to Jóro Fángel, and from thence to Báya.

(a.) Middle road.

1st day. A “rúmde” of the slaves of Mohammed dan Jóbdi the governor of Kóncha, on the banks of the mayo Béli, along the eastern bank of which the traveller continues his march, in a wide valley inclosed on both sides by mountain-chains.

2nd. Rúmde Fángel; that is to say, the rúmde or slave-village of Jóro Fángel, on a hill of considerable elevation. The slaves are of the tribe of the Tekʿa.

3rd. Jóro Fángel, the “lord’s seat” of Fángel, the chief who has established in these quarters the dominion of the Fúlbe; a place of middling size, in a valley inclosed by mountains.

(b.) Westernmost road. [N.B. Rate rather slow.]

1st day. Rúmde Kaighámman, a slave-village belonging to Kóncha, in a level country; arrive a little after noon. The name Kaighámman originally belonged to the Kanúri.

2nd. Encamp on the bank of the máyo Tafári, which, running from west to east, but further on turning northward, receives the máyo Léggel, which is crossed in the morning soon after leaving the rúmde, and the máyo Bénglarí, which is crossed further on; both these watercourses are dry in summer. Arrive about four o’clock P.M.

3rd. Úro Bákari Yémyem, the residence of the Púllo chief of the Bákari, overtowered towards the west by a large mountain; arrive early in the forenoon.

4th. Rúmde Bákari Yémyem, with a mountain-chain rising to a considerable elevation towards the south; arrive early in the forenoon.

5th. Jóro Fángel; the east side of the place is skirted, according to the Púllo Ádama, an intelligent native of Ádamáwa, by the máyo Bána or Mbána, which, at a short distance from Tíngeren, joins the Fáro. Arrive before noon. This well-known place, Jóro Fángel, is not to be confounded with a smaller place of the same name.

An expeditious traveller, keeping along the most direct eastern road, and sleeping in Lámtam, is able to reach Jóro Fángel on the second day.

vi. From Jóro Fángel to Báya.

1st day. Tínger, a Púllo settlement, the residence of Ádama Jíkera, a powerful Púllo chief, who commands the tribe of the Bákari, or Bákari Yémyem, who are said to be cannibals. Ádama Jíkera, who is the brother of Sámbo Jíkera, has about one hundred horse under his command. This place is not to be confounded with a place of a similar name, Téngeren, the residence of another chief of the name of Ádama Jíkera, which I shall mention further on.

2nd. A village inhabited by pagans of the tribe of the Jétem, as they are called by the Fúlbe, who most probably have been transplanted hither: the village is skirted by the river Fáro, which is here small, although during part of the year it becomes navigable for boats; towards the east rises a considerable hill. Arrive between two and three o’clock P.M.

3rd. Rúmde Ngáundere, the slave-village mentioned above, with a large mountain towards the east; arrive between two and three o’clock P.M.

4th. Ngáundere.

The following is a more direct road from Kóncha to Ngáundere:—

1st day. Encamp on the máyo Béli, in a very level country with several small slave-hamlets lying round about; arrive at noon; direction S.S.E.

2nd. Púllo settlement of Ámba Sámbo Jíkera, or Zíkera (Jíkera being the name of his grandfather), with a large mountain on the north side; arrive about noon; S.S.E.

3rd. Fílla-Ngáwu, a village of the Mbúm, in a mountainous district, with very small watercourses. Hence half a day’s march N.E., and a day and a half from Ámba Sámbo Jíkera, is the Téngeren which I mentioned above, consisting of two separate villages—a Púllo settlement towards the west, and, about six miles east, a pagan village of the Mbúm, in a mountainous district. Téngeren is also a day and a half’s march from Rúmde Ngáundere, the traveller who comes from the former place passing the night in a rúmde of Ámba Sámbo, on the north bank of the Fáro.

4th. Ngáundere, between three and four o’clock P.M.

5th. A village of the Mbúm, situated on the bank of the máyo Nélbi, which joins the máyo Gelangéro. This stream is perennial, and during part of the year even navigable; on the south side of the village is a mountain. Arrive in the forenoon.

6th. Mambúm (properly Ma-Mbúm), a considerable place, and residence of Arnádo, a chief of the tribe of the Mbúm, skirted on its east side by the máyo Nélbi, in a level country; arrive about noon. Mambúm is distant from Katíl one day’s march, S.W.

7th. Rískobáya, a village of the pagan Mbúm, thus denominated from a man named Rísko, a slave of Mohammed Jóbdi. The southern side of the village is bordered by a watercourse, dry in summer, called by the Fúlbe “máyo balléwo;” on the east side there is a mountain, and the whole road is mountainous. Arrive between four and five o’clock P.M.

8th. Encamp in the wilderness about two o’clock P.M.

9th. Dóka, or rather the residence of Dóka, the principal chief of the Báya country. I cannot say with certainty whether this place be the same as that where the other itinerary terminates. The country level, and covered with dense forest.

vii. From Chámba to Tibáti.

(a.) Eastern road.

1st day. Búbadáddi, the village mentioned above, situated in the southern angle formed by the junction of the river of Kóncha (called by some Máyo Íbbi, by others M. Déve) with the Fáro; about noon.

2nd. Rúmde Dírrim, a hamlet of the slaves of Ámba Sámbo, who originally belong to the tribe of the Mbúm. The country level; much forest. Arrive about noon.

3rd. Rúmde Fáro, another slave-village of Ámba Sámbo (which, however, has a name in the native language also), situated on the north side of the Fáro, which here makes a sweep from west to east. Arrive between two and three o’clock P.M., having crossed in the morning several small streams, and further on a mountain-chain, which seems to border the valley of the river on the north side.

4th. Rúmde Dúbbel, another slave-village; arrive about noon, having crossed the river Fáro in the morning, and then traversed a dense forest, full of elephants, in a level country.

5th. Tibáti, a large walled town, being the only town of this description in Ádamáwa besides Ray Búba—Ngáundere being merely fortified with a low rampart,—but inhabited for the most part by slaves, and not by Fúlbe. It is the residence of a governor. The town is situated on a small river skirting its north-eastern side, and then running N.W. towards the Fáro, which it is said to join one day’s journey west from Rúmde Fáro. It is generally called Kogí-n-Tibáti. On the north side of the town there seems to be a large swamp, perhaps an inlet of the river. Tibáti boasts, according to all my informants, of the richest vegetation in all Ádamáwa. About ten miles west from the town is a more considerable river, not fordable during some months, which, according to my best informants, is the máyo Béli, coming from a considerable distance S.W.

(b.) Western road, according to Mohammed.

1st day. Bómbaké, a Púllo village; before noon.

2nd. Encamp on the bank of a rivulet (the máyo Kotégo?) running westward, between two and three o’clock P.M.

3rd. Gábdi Mbána, a village of the pagan Mbúm (Mbána?), in a level country; about noon.

4th. Kóro-Mbána, another pagan village; before noon.

5th. The residence of Ádama Jíkera (see above); at the same time.

6th. Varvándu, a place situated on the south side of a river which informant calls the Fáro, and which is crossed on branches of trees. Towards S.E. a mountain is seen.

7th. Another place of Ádama Jíkera, in a level country; about noon.

8th. Tibáti.

(c.) According to Mʿallem Katúri.

1st day. Gungúti, a considerable Púllo place in a level country, the southern horizon alone being bordered by mountains. Early in the morning the broad river Fáro is crossed, during the latter part of the rainy season and shortly afterwards, in boats, at other times of the year by fording. Arrive between two and three o’clock P.M.

2nd. Pass the night out in a hilly country full of elephants and buffaloes, while the deléb-palm or gigiña, and the gónda or Papaya predominate in the forest[174]; arrive at two or three o’clock P.M.

3rd. A village of the pagan Mbána, in a woody country, with mountains towards west and south. Road mostly keeps along the bank of a rivulet, which is said to join the Fáro. Arrive between two and three o’clock P.M.

4th. Hamlets of the pagan Múmbere (?), who live on the summits of the mountains, the whole country being mountainous, and the road leading over the heights.

5th. Encamp near a large lake or swamp, which informant calls by the Háusa appellation “rúwa-n-dórina” (“Hippopotamus water”), in a hollow between the mountains; arrive between four and five o’clock P.M.

6th. The large settlement of Ámba Sámbo Jíkera, surrounded by hills.

7th. The Púllo settlement of Ádama Jíkera, in a valley-plain surrounded by mountains on all sides, and intersected by a small rivulet.

8th. A pagan village, Varvándu, in a plain, through which the Fáro runs from south to north.

9th. Encamp in an uninhabited woody country perfectly level.

10th. Tibáti, about noon.

I shall here add two short itineraries from Tibáti to Ngáundere. Direction, E.N.E.

1st day. A slave-village called Rúmde Tibáti, about noon.

2nd. Village of the Mbúm, in a mountainous district.

3rd. Rúmde Dúbi, before noon.

4th. Ngáundere, between two and three o’clock P.M.

Or a nearer road in three days, passing the first night in Rúmde Mbúm, and the second in a slave-village of ʿAbd-Alláhi, and travelling each day from early in the morning till about noon.

viii. From Tibáti to the Íbo or Ígbo Country.

1st day. A village of the Búte, called, by my Háusa informant the mʿallem Katúri, “garí-n-Kachélla Búte;” arrive between two and three o’clock P.M.

2nd. A village of the Tikár (Tikʿa), called by him “garí-n-Kachélla Tikár,” situated in a dense forest; about noon.

3rd. Another pagan village, called by him “garí-n-Kachélla-n-Yémyem;” about noon.

4th. A village inhabited by the Monchéran, a tribe of the Búte. Country level and woody.

5th. A pagan village or “úngwa,” consisting of two hamlets, one of which lies at the foot and the other on the summit of a hill; between two and three o’clock P.M.

6th. Another pagan village, the residence of a powerful native chief, and therefore called by the Háusa people “garí-n-serkí-n-Yémyem.”

7th. A village of the great chief of the Fándu, in a level country. All these pagan tribes, whose principal weapon is the bow and arrow, are in the imána of Ámba Sámbo.

8th. Residence of the principal chief of the Tikár, or rather Tikʿa, a tribe marked by four scars or cuts under the eyes. Each of these pagan tribes has its peculiar language or dialect.

9th. Another pagan village, called “garí-n-Kachélla-n-Bum,” in a plain woody country, with a considerable river passable only in boats, and called by the Háusa people “rúwa-n-kádo” (the crocodile river).

10th. Encamp on the northern bank of the same river, called here “báki-n-kogí Jétem,” after the Jétem, the pagan inhabitants of the country. It winds along through a mountainous district.

11th. A village of the Mó, a large tribe of pagans, who live on the summits of the mountains situated on the same river. This whole tribe is armed with muskets. A long day’s journey, till about four or five o’clock P.M.

12th. Village of the Abó, in a mountainous district watered by a river. Towards the south a town called Úmbe is situated, being conspicuous by a large mountain.

13th. Dingding, another pagan tribe, who feed chiefly on a particular kind of clay, which they prepare with butter. The people of the slave-expedition themselves lived upon it while in this district, and represent it as not unpleasant. The Dingding are also armed with guns. The name Dingding, however, most probably is not the indigenous name of this tribe.

14th. Yúruwa, another pagan tribe, armed with guns, and living in a mountainous district.

15th. Pó, another tribe, living chiefly on sugar-cane (not, as it seems, the Holcus saccharatus), which they boil, and eat like honey. Country mountainous.

16th. Íbo, dwelling in nine villages on the “black water” (báki-n-rúwa), as many of the Háusa people call the Kwára, although the Ígbo and other tribes in that district give the name “black water” in general to the Bénuwé, while they distinguish the Kwára as the “white water.”

The Íbo, whom, as well as the Dingding, the Fúlbe believe to be Christians, have neither cattle, horses, nor asses, but plenty of large sheep, goats, swine, and poultry. The expedition which my informant accompanied in 1848-9 spent two months in this country, plundering it and carrying away a great many slaves. Since that time the Fúlbe can in some respects truly say that their empire extends as far as the sea; for now every year the Íbo, at least part of them, and their neighbours are said to bring slaves, salt, and cowries as a kind of tribute to the governor of Chámba. The same expedition after having retraced its steps as far as the garí-n-Kachélla Bum, again returned towards the Great River, and fell upon and plundered Mbáfu, said to be three days’ journey north from the Íbo country.[175]

ix. From Jóro Fángel to the Country of the Jétem.

1st day. Lúmta, a Púllo settlement in a level country, the N.E. side of which is skirted by the máyo Nélbi; arrive about noon. Road crosses several small water-courses; direction a little west from south.

2nd. Máyo Béli, a place chiefly inhabited by pagans, with the addition of but a few Fúlbe, skirted by a river of the same name, turning from west to north. The country mountainous, but the mountains not rising to a great elevation. Arrive between two and three o’clock P.M.

3rd. Hosére Lábul, a large mountain, inhabited by Tikʿa, and extending a considerable distance west. This mountain is generally regarded in Ádamáwa as the feeder of the sources of the river Fáro; but according to this informant (the Háj Ádama, an intelligent man who speaks as an eye-witness), only a small rivulet, the máyo Tolóre, skirts its east foot, and joins the máyo Béli. Arrive about noon. Hosére Lábul is one day’s journey S.W. from Tibáti.

4th. Yáwa, a village of the pagan Tikár (Tikʿa), in a plain woody country with a small river, which skirts the east side of the village (perhaps the upper course of máyo Béli). Arrive between two and three o’clock P.M. From Hosére Lábul you take a more westerly direction.

5th. Bomfónga, a village of another division of the Tikár (Tikʿa), in a plain with small rivulets. Fárfar, the great capital of the Tikár, is distant from this a long day W.N.W. The country of the Tikár (Tikʿa) in general is well inhabited, the cultivated ground alternating with dense forest, wherein the gonda and the banana prevail; in the more south-westerly districts the góro-tree (Sterculea acuminata) and the hóno-ruwá, or máji-n-góro (St. macrocarpos). That species of grain called masr (Zea maïs), and dóga or yams, constitute the principal produce,—very little millet, no cotton; the country almost all level, with plenty of small rivulets. The inhabitants have, besides huts of clay built overground, also caves underground.

6th. Encamp in the wilderness, the country inhabited by the Déri. A long day.

7th. Encamp in the wilderness at a spot where natron is found. The country inhabited by the Bóre, another division of the Tikár (Tikʿa).

8th. Lengwájí, a great mountain inhabited by Tikár, who are in the imána of Ámba Sámbo, the governor of Chámba; before noon.

9th. Bómbom, one of the chief places of the Tikár; about noon.

10th. Fándu, another division of the Tikár; before noon. Direction a little south from west.

11th. Mbónga, a large place of the Tikár in a level country, with but a few mountains; before noon.

12th. Jolonjúnga, a straggling hamlet in a level country, with a rivulet running north; between two and three o’clock P.M.

13th. Máyo Kim, a considerable river running from east to west (S.E. to N.W.?), to join the Njéreng, and forming the boundary between the territory of the Jétem and that of the Tikár; about noon.

14th. Lamórde—that is to say, the residence of a chief of the Jétem,—in a level country; between four and five o’clock P.M.

15th. The rocky mountain (hosére) Gelangéro (not the original, but a Fulfúlde name), in an uncultivated country intersected only by small watercourses; between two and three o’clock P.M.

16th. Kosél Danél, a small hill belonging to the territory of the Jétem, west of which live the Dingding. The Jétem, as well as the Tikár, have no guns (but according to some the Jétem have). The Mó dwell to the north of the Jétem.

17th. Reach a river called by the Fúlbe “máyo balléwo” (the black river), which, like the Kim, is said to join the Njéreng, a considerable river, navigable for boats at all seasons of the year, and running southward. Mbáfu is said to be three days west, and Tóto five days N.W. from this place.

x. From Ray-Búba to Mbáfu.

1st day. Hosére chólle. See above, p. 613.

2nd. Dánfa, a village inhabited by pagans, who do not tattoo, and whose weapons are spears and arrows.

4th. Jáfa, a pagan village inhabited by a division of the Dúru, who make long gashes on the left side of the body. This place lies round a rocky hill, the south side of which is free from huts, while the dwelling of the chief is on the north side. You cross the river Bénuwé in the morning of the first day after leaving Dánfa, and, having passed the night in the wilderness, arrive early the next morning.

6th. Bére, a village (see p. 617.) inhabited by pagans who make incisions in the under lip; the country is mountainous, but the mountains are detached. Direction S.W. Another longer road leads from Jáfa, a little east from south, to Ságje, a large Púllo place situated a day’s journey S.W. from the above-mentioned place, Saláng, and from thence west to Bére.

7th. A village of the Mbum.

8th. Gankaini (see p. 626.), a village of the Mbum; the country level, covered with dense forests, the large spreading “lainde” and the “kímba” being the prevailing trees.

9th. Jerang, in the forenoon.

10th. A village of the Mbum, in the forenoon.

11th. A rivulet, called by the Háusa people “kogí-n-góra,” in the wilderness.

12th. Soló, a village of the Búna, who make three small cuts over the cheekbone, and possess neither horned cattle nor sheep, but only goats and poultry; the country level, and covered with a dense forest.

13th. Bóngoré, a village of the Búte, who live in light huts constructed of branches. The Búte, upon whom the Kótofó, driven from their ancient seats about Chámba, have thrown themselves, wear no clothing except a narrow rope, made of bark, round the loins; they have long arrows and spears, and large shields of a very peculiar shape. They are said to have red copper in their country, and to work it themselves.

14th. Yénda, a place of the Kótofó. The whole country is flat, with much sandy soil, masr and sorghum being cultivated, besides a great deal of vegetables; the country abounds in water, but has no running streams, all the watercourses being of a shallow, wide-spreading character, such as are called “ngáljam” in Kanúri, and “fáddama” in Háusa. The rainy season is said to have here only three months’ duration, the heat, even in the dry season, not being immoderate. The predominant trees are the góro, kímba, mosóro, jittagúllo, and the passakóre. S.E., half a day’s march from Yénda, is another large place of the Kótofó, called Koróngo.

15th. Bónchobé, W.S.W.

16th. Bérberó.

24th. Bambúm. Having passed during eight days, first through the country of the Búte, then through that of the Tikár, or rather Tikʿa, you reach this place, belonging to another tribe.

27th. Mbáfu. Mohámmedu my intelligent informant, says that there are large and wealthy towns in this country, with well-frequented market-places, and that the people have a great deal of property, and mostly European furniture; all the houses are made of clay. He represents the inhabitants of Mbáfu, as well as the Tikár and Dingding, as being of a copper colour. They wear their hair dressed to a great height like all the pagans hereabouts, let the beard grow, and practise circumcision. The tree “tármo,” with a fine fruit, is predominant. Of the identity of Mbáfu with Mr. Koelle’s Mfút, and of its situation, a few days’ journey N.E. from Kálabá, I have already spoken.

xi. From Ngaúndere to the Batí.

1st day. Mambúm.

2nd. Soló.

3rd. Bóngoré.

4th. Búbadáddi Kachellél (the name not original, but introduced altogether by the conquerors), a village of the Kótofó; the whole country, as all the country south of that of the Mbum in general, is said to be perfectly level.

5th. Bíttik, another village of the Kótofó; arrive about noon. The direction, which, as far as Búbadáddi, has been almost south, now turns south by west. A day and a half S.W. from Búbadáddi lies Géniyon, and further on in the same direction Búbabóntong.

6th. Bórmoná, a place of the Búte; a long day’s march.

7th. Mángchirin, a woody district, governed by a woman, with a great mountain towards the west.

10th. Bébe, a pagan village consisting of huts built of clay.

11th. Mére, another pagan village; country woody.

14th. Batí, a tribe of pagans of peculiarly light colour[176], well made, and not marked by any incisions; they wear an apron round the loins made of cotton, and dwell in huts built of clay; they have only sheep, no horned cattle; they have shells for currency, and live at no great distance from the sea, in the direction of which is seen a very large mountain. They have no firearms, but only spears, and their country abounds in elephants and wild pigs.

I am happy to add that Thomas J. Hutchison, Esq., H.M.’s consul at Fernando Po, with whom I am engaged in active correspondence, is making diligent inquiries with regard to the tribes of whom I obtained information in the interior, through the missionary Mr. Anderson. These inquiries tend always more and more to corroborate my information.

CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE CONTAINING A LIST OF THE SÉFUWA, OR KINGS OF BÓRNU DESCENDED FROM SÉF. WITH THE FEW HISTORICAL FACTS AND EVENTS UNDER THEIR RESPECTIVE REIGNS, THAT HAVE COME TO OUR KNOWLEDGE.

Name of the King. Principal Events during the Reign of each King. Place where he died. Length of the Reign in Lunar Years.

Séf. Is said to have come to Kánem, where he founded a new dynasty, and reigned over several tribes; viz. the Berbers (Begháma?), Tebu, or Tedá, Kánembú, and others. Imám Áhmed states expressly that he came to Njímiye. Sámina. 20.

(Said to be) Son of Dhu Yazan and of a woman of Mekka. A place in the territory of the Dájó?[177]

Ibrahím, or Bíram. “Father of the Sultan.”—Imám Áhmed. ? 16.

Son of Séf and ʿAáisha.

Dúku, or Dúgu. Seems to be generally recognized as the first king of this dynasty; and for this reason, his father Íbrahím is called “father of the Sultan.” There is still in Bórnu a numerous family called Dúguwa, who refer their origin to Dúgu; and it would seem that Dúguwa is the name which really belongs to the dynasty, as is intimated by the chronicle itself further on. Yéri Árfasá. [250] ?

Son of Íbrahím and Ghafalúwa, of the tribe of the Kaye. A place said by the Bórnu people (I have no doubt erroneously) to lie S. from Túburi, in the Músgu country. We shall find a place Yira in Kánem. Probably second half of the 9th century, A.D.

Funé. A powerful and successful prince. Malána. 60.

Son of Dúgu. A place in Kánem.

Aritsó. ? 50.

Son of Funé and Fukálshi.

Katúri. Kaluwána. [250](?).

Son of Aritsó ben Funé.

Adyóma, Ayóma, or Wayáma. His reign evidently falls in the last years of the 4th and the first of the 5th century of the Hejra; most probably in 390-410, or A.D. 1000-1019. Tatnúri. 20.

Son of Katúri and Tumáyu, of the tribe of the Bení Ghalgha. With an uncertain surname, Bereríya. (Berberíya?)

Bulú. Dheghjabadmi, or Meghjibadmi. 16.

Son of Adyóma and Ghanjáya, of the tribe of the Kaye.

Árki. Had plenty of slaves, of whom he settled 300 in Dirká (probably Dirki), 300 in Síggedim, both in Kawár; and 300 in Rílana, or Zílana, the place where he died. From this it is evident that he was master of the Tebu country. Rílana, or Zílana. 44.

Son of Bulú and Azisenna, of the tribe of the Temágheri.

Shú, or Húwa.[178] Distinguished by his fine figure. If we knew that he “reigned by a viceroy or khalífa,” we should conclude that he was an effeminate man; but that is only M. Blau’s misapprehension.[179] Ghanta Kamna. 4.

Son of Árki and Tefsú, of the tribe of the Temágheri.

Selma, or ʿAbd el Jelíl. Was the last king of the dynasty of the Dúguwa, or Bení Dúgu, if we understand this name as coincident with idolatry. For although the chronicle distinguishes plainly between the Bení Dúgu and the Bení Humé, nevertheless it is evident that Humé, the successor of ʿAbd el Jelíl, and the first Mohammedan king of Kánem, was his son. It is therefore clear that Bení Humé means nothing else than the Mohammedan kings, as contradistinguished from the Dúguwa, the pagans.[180] Ghumzú, 4.

Son of Shú and of a woman of the tribe of the Ghemarma. (Maghárma?) With the surname Ridha. (?)

Humé, or Umé. Founded a new dynasty by the profession of Islám. Makrízi’s (Hamaker, p. 206.) statement, that the first Mohammedan king of Kánem was Mohammed Ben Jebel (or rather Jíl) refers most probably to the later dynasty of Kánem, namely, the Bulála, while he counted all the members of this and the older Bórnu dynasty together, and made up the number of forty kings who had preceded him. (See what I have said above on this point, p. 263.) The missionary who introduced Islám into Kánem, according to the same Makrízi, was Hádí el ʿOthmání. From the place where Humé died, it may be inferred that he intended, or even accomplished, a pilgrimage. Masr (Egypt). 12.

Son of ʿAbd el Jelíl and Tikramma, of the tribe of the Kaye. A.H. 479-490. A.D. 1086-1097.

Dúnama. A very powerful king, according to the chronicle the most powerful of the Bení Humé, who had a strong and very numerous army, horse and foot, and made thrice the pilgrimage to Mekka with a numerous retinue. Having excited the suspicions of the inhabitants of Egypt, he is said to have been drowned by them when embarking at Suez for Mekka, and in the very turbulent state in which Egypt was at that time, under the reign of e’ Dháfer be ámr-Illah, this is by no means so improbable as it might otherwise appear to be. The capital Njímiye, notwithstanding the strength of the empire, seems to have been at that time still a very small place.[181] Egypt, or rather the Gulf of Suez. 55.

Son of Humé and Kintá, of the tribe of the Tebu, or Tedá (not Tíh). A.H. 491-545. A.D. 1098-1150.

Bíri. Seems to have been at first entirely under the influence of his mother, who even imprisoned him. If he had not much energy, he must have been at least a very learned man, for Imám Áhmed calls him “el fáki e’ táki,” p. 31.; and it would seem from the report of the chronicle, that part of the ceremonial of the court dates from his time, even if through the influence of his mother. Ghamtilú? Bela Ghanna. (billa ghaná?) 27.

Son of Dúnama and Fasáme, of the tribe of the Kaye. A.H. 546-572. A.D. 1151-1176.

ʿAbd Allah, or Dála. Fafsa. 17.

Son of Bíkoru ben Bíri and of Zíneb, of the tribe of the Tebu, or Tubu (not Túba.) A.H. 573-589. A.D. 1177-1193.

Selma, or ʿAbd el Jelíl. As he lived in the most flourishing period of the Bení Háfis, the Tunisian princes, who, by their friendship, are said to have occasioned the ascendancy of the Bórnu kings over the whole desert[182], he must have been one of the most powerful of the latter. He is said to have been the first black king of this dynasty, all the Bórnu kings before him having had a light complexion like the Arabs. But this latter assertion seems to be contradicted by the fact, that a preceding king had borne the name of Selma, or Tselma, which means “the black” (properly tsélima), from tsélim, or tsílim, “black.” Jejéska Ghazrwána. 28.

Son of Bíkoru and Húwa, of the tribe of the Débirí. A.H. 590-617. A.D. 1194-1220.

Dúnama, or Áhmed. A very warlike prince, who waged many wars, which were generally conducted by his sons, who in consequence formed themselves into parties and factions. His strength, like that of his ancestor Dúnama, seems to have consisted chiefly in cavalry, of which he is said in the chronicle to have possessed 41,000; but, according to the more credible testimony of Wanúma Mohammed Ghaná, cited by Imám Áhmed (pp. 77, 78.), he had 30,000; and that ought not to appear so exaggerated, although the king in Leo’s time had only 3000, for that was a very different period, when the empire was almost ruined. Dúnama’s most celebrated deed—of which we are informed—is the war he waged against the Tebu for more than seven years; according to tradition, 7 years, 7 months, and 7 days. And it is most probable that it was this enterprising and restless king who extended the empire of Kánem over the whole of Fezzán,—a state of things which lasted till about the middle of the 14th century.[183] He likewise is the king who, in the time of Ébn Sʿaíd, A.H. 650 (A.D. 1252-3), invaded the well-watered populous country of Mabiná[184], which it is difficult to identify, although the name bears some resemblance to Fúmbiná, the indigenous name of Ádamáwa, while the geographer’s account of the situation of that country agrees well with Fúmbiná; but we shall find another name closely related to it. It is also Ebn Sʿaíd who first calls Bórnu—that is, the country on the south-western side of the Tsád as far as Díkowa—part of Kánem. The empire of Kánem at that time extended, according to Imám Áhmed, from the Nile, near Dhúwi, as far as the rivulet Baramuwása, in the west, which most probably is identical with what Clapperton (Second Journey, p. 63.) calls the river Moussa (bahr Músa), the river which divides the territories of Yóruba and Bórgu, and we may add, from Mábiná in the south to Wadán in the north. (See what I have said, p. 263.; also, with regard to the present sent by the king of Bórnu to the ruler of Tunis in A.H. 665.) But Dúnama laid the foundation for the ensuing disasters of the empire, by opening, as the Bórnu people say, the “munni,” or “talisman of Bórnu.” What it was it is difficult to say[185]; but what it meant may be more easily conjectured, chiefly from the words of the imám Áhmed, who expresses himself thus (pp. 123, 124.): “When the thing which was in it (the talisman) escaped, it called forth and provoked every powerful man to ambition and intrigues, in the government and in high charges.” Indeed, from this time, civil wars, murders of kings, and changes in the dynasty, succeeded each other without interruption. Zamtam. 40.

Son of Selma and Díbalá (therefore his full name Díbalámi Dúnama Selmámi), of the tribe of the Maghárma. A little W. from Ghambarú. A.H. 618-657. A.D. 1221-1259.

“The true faith, in his time,” according to Ebn Sʿaíd, “was largely disseminated in Kánem,”—a remarkable change effected since the time when El Bekri wrote his account. It was under his reign (A.H. 640) that the inhabitants of Kánem built the Médreset Ébn Rashik at Cairo, where their travellers might alight.[186]

Kadé, or ʿAbd el Kadím. Murdered by a man of the name of ʿAndákama Dúnama. We know nothing further of his reign. Dhurríya Ghimútú. 29.

Son of Dúnama (?) and Máthala, of the tribe of the Meghárma. A.H. 658-686. A.D. 1259-1285.

Bíri (Íbrahím). “A Conqueror,” but unfortunately it is not known in what quarter he made his conquests. It is an important fact, gleaned from the chronicle, that two religious chiefs of the Fúlbe or Felláta of Mélle came to him.[187] Known to Makrízí. Njímiye. 20.

Son of Dúnama and Zíneb, of the tribe of the Lekmamma. A.H. 687-706. A.D. 1288-1306.

(Íbrahím) Nikále. Killed one of his sons, who most probably had revolted against him; was murdered himself and thrown into the river Wáú, the so-called Yeou, by Yeráma Mohammed. From the title “Háj” given to him by Makrízí, we see that he made a pilgrimage to Mekka. Dískama. 20.

Son of (Bíri) Íbrahím and of Kakúdi, of the tribe of the Kúnkuna. A place on the Bórnu river, one day’s march from the later capital, or Bírni. A.H. 707-726. A.D. 1307-1326.

ʿAbd Allah. A just prince, who, having punished the murderers of the former king, and after having successfully vanquished his rival the Bagharíma (see further down,—and not as Blau, p. 326. n. 18., translates, “Prince of Bagharmi,” a state not existing at that time), seems to have established his power with a strong hand. Njímiye. 20.

Son of Kadé and Fátima. A.H. 727-746. A.D. 1326-1345.

Selma. Fell in a war with the Só, or Soy[188], the original inhabitants of the greater part of the country between the Wáú (Yeou) and the Shárí. This powerful nation, whom the former kings seem to have greatly reduced, but without taking and destroying their strongholds, appears to have risen at that period, in a successful war, against their aggressors, vanquishing and killing four successive Bórnu kings, all sons of the unfortunate ʿAbd Allah, whom an afflicted mother is said to have cursed. Yúsub. 4.

Son of ʿAbd Allah and of Kamma. A.H. 747-750. A.D. 1346-1349.

Kuré Ghaná. Vanquished and killed by the Só. Ghaliwá (?). 1.

Son of ʿAbd Allah. A.H. 751. A.D. 1350.

Kuré Kurá. Vanquished and killed by the Só, at the same place as his brother and predecessor. Ghaliwá. 1.

Son of ʿAbd Allah. A.H. 752. A.D. 1351.

Mohammed. Vanquished and killed by the Só. Nánigham. 1.

Son of ʿAbd Allah. A.H. 753. A.D. 1352.

Edrís. Reigned in the middle of A.D. 1353 (A.H. 754), when Ébn Batúta, who calls him king of Bórnu, returned from his visit to Mélle and Songhay by way of Tekádda. It is evident that the sons of ʿAbd Allah having all died, the royal dignity reverted to the family of Nikále (Ibrahím). Whether Edrís was more successful than his predecessors against the Só we are not informed, nor do we know anything of his reign; and indeed the great uncertainty which prevails as to the place where he died, seems to intimate rather a quiet reign, at least as regards its latter period, though, as Dámmasak was one of the chief strongholds of the Só, it would have been of some importance for us to know positively whether he died there. Njímiye. 25.

Son of Nikále (Íbrahím) and Hafsa. This is the current tradition; but some maintained that he died at Dámmasak.[189] A.H. 754-778. A.D. 1353-1376.

He made a pilgrimage to Mekka, and is therefore called “Háj Edrís” by Makrízí.

Dáúd. A very important, but rather unfortunate reign, bearing the germs of the expulsion of the Bórnu dynasty from Kánem, their original seat, and of the transference of their residence to Bórnu. The successful aggressors were the Búlala (as the name is written in the chronicle), or rather Bulála (as Imám Áhmed constantly writes it, and as the name is pronounced generally), who, originating from a branch line of the royal family of Kánem, by their forefather Jíl Shikomémi (a son of Dúnama Díbalámi?), had founded a powerful principality in the territory of Fittrí (“the lake”), over the numerous tribes of the Kúka (Leo’s Gaoga). As to the period of the rise of this dynasty, we have the distinct testimony of Imám Áhmed, that it was after the time of Dúnama Díbalámi.[190] Mélfala. 10.

Son of Nikále (Íbrahím) and Fátima, a sister of Hafsa the mother of his brother and predecessor Edrís. A.H. 779-788. A.D. 1377-1386.

Weakened by a civil war with one or more of his sons, who, having been beaten, seem to have taken refuge with the pagans of the tribe of Ghammúwa, where Edrís Alawóma found their progeny, Dáúd ben Nikále was driven out of Njímiye, the old capital, and finally killed by ʿAbd el Jelíl, the Bulála king.

ʿOthman. Seems to have waged the war with the Bulála at first with some success, and even to have retaken Njímiye, when he likewise succumbed. He, as well as his successor, became known to Makrízí. Njímiye. 4.

Son of Dáud. A.H. 789-792. A.D. 1387-1390.

ʿOthmán. Sustained the struggle for two years, when he met the same fate as his uncle and his cousin. During this time there was a prince in Háusa, or Afunú, called Mastúr, in a certain degree of dependency on Kánem. (Makrízí.) 2.

Son of Edrís and Famáfa. A.H. 793-794. A.D. 1391-1392.

Ábú Bakr Liyátu. Was killed by the Bulála, after a reign of a few months. Shefiyári, in Kánem. 9 mo.

Son of Dáúd. A.H. 795. A.D. 1392.

ʿOmár. This prince was at length so hardly pressed by the Bulála that he finally, with the consent of his ʿulama, gave up Kánem entirely, transferring his residence to Kaghá, a district of some forty miles in extent, between Ujé and Gújeba, notorious in Bórnu as the refuge of every defeated party during the civil wars, where they went to recruit their strength. And though, in the course of time, Bórnu recovered from intestine troubles, and flourished once more under mighty princes, who even vanquished the Bulála, none of them ever returned to Kánem in order to fix his residence there. Demaghíya. 5.

Son of Edrís. (Not, as it seems, Maghíya.) A.H. 796-800. A.D. 1394-1398.

Sʿaíd. A usurper, as it would seem; for the chronicle does not give him the usual title of sultan, but calls him merely “melek,” and does not name his father. Nevertheless he must be reckoned in the list of the Bórnu kings. The Bulála, not content with having wrested Kánem from the hands of their enemies, followed them into their new retreat, and vanquished and killed Sʿaíd near Dekakíya. Dekakíya. 1.

A.H. 801. A.D. 1398-9.

Kadé Áfunú. Fell likewise in the war with the Bulála in the course of a year, having, as it would seem, resumed the offensive. Why the surname “Áfnó,” or “Áfunú,” was given to him is not clear; perhaps from his mother being of Áfno (Háusa) origin. Ghadhurú (?). 1.

Son of Edrís. (Not Ghumuzú.) A.H. 802. A.D. 1399-1400.

Bíri. A long reign, after several short and unfortunate ones; but the only fact with regard to it of which we are informed, namely, a civil war between the king and the keghámma or seraskier, Mohammed ben Diltu, is not of a kind to give an idea of repose and happiness. The ensuing period of the history of Bórnu may be called a period of civil war and of the greatest distress. Kanántú. 33.

Son of Edrís. (In Bagharmi?) A.H. 803-835. A.D. 1400-1432.

ʿOthmán Kalnama. Succumbed, after a short reign of a few months, to the party of the keghámma Nikále ben Ibrahím and the yeríma Kadé; and deprived of his throne, he appears to have been obliged to seek refuge in the Áfnó (Háusa) province of Kanó, where he died, or more probably was killed. Áfunú, Kano.[191] 9 mo.

Son of Dáúd. A.H. 836. A.D. 1432.

Dúnama. Was murdered after a short reign. Nánigham. 2.

Son of ʿOmár. A.H. 836-838. A.D. 1433-4.

ʿAbd Allah, or Dála. Was embroiled in a civil war with the keghámma ʿAbd Allah Dighelma, who even dethroned him, and made Íbrahím the son of ʿOthmán king, but, on the death of the latter, restored him to the throne. The eight years attributed to his reign by the negligently-written chronicle seem to comprise the two periods of his reign, before and after Íbrahím; or it must be understood that Íbrahím placed ʿAbd Allah again upon the throne, after the death of keghámma. Famelfa. 8.

Son of ʿOmar, with the surname Dakumúni. A.H. 838-846. A.D. 1435-1442.

Íbrahím. Seems to have excited the discontent of his subjects by neither keeping a regular court nor showing himself to his people. After a reign of eight years he was murdered by Kadé (his brother?). Though this is the only king of the name of Íbrahím in the list of Bórnu kings of the end of the 15th, or the beginning of the 16th century, it is evident that he could not have been a contemporary of Leo Africanus, and that the latter erred, from lapse of memory, in the account of Africa which he composed several years after his visit to those countries, in calling the king who reigned over Bórnu during the time of his visit Íbrahím. Zamtam. 8.

Son of ʿOthmán. One day N. from Ghámbarú. A.H. 846-854. A.D. 1442-1450.

Kadé. Succumbed, after a short reign, to a rival, Dúnama son of Bíri. Amará, or Amazá. 1.

Son of ʿOthmán. A.H. 854-5. A.D. 1450-1.

Dúnama. Aghakúwah. 4.

Son of Bíri. A.H. 855-859. A.D. 1451-1455.

Mohammed. Mazá. 5 mo.

Son of Mátala. A.H. 859. A.D. 1455.

Mer, or Amer. Tármata. 1.

Son of ʿAáisha daughter of ʿOthmán. A.H. 860. A.D. 1456.

Mohammed. A very cruel and sanguinary prince; probably reigned but a very short time, only a few days. Meghjibád-Nerí-Kerbúri (?). (?)

Son of Kadé.

Ghají. Defeated in battle, and killed by Mohammed son of ʿAbd Allah, the king of Kánem. Matakla Ghamer. 5.

Son of Amála, or Imáta. A.H. 861-865. A.D. 1456-1461.

ʿOthman. Notwithstanding his excellent qualities as a prince, he was dethroned in consequence of a civil war with ʿAlí Ghajidéni, who, though he apparently had the upper hand, by some unknown circumstances, or from some unknown reasons of his own, to which we have no key, allowed another person to occupy the throne that had thus become vacant. Mikidhá. 5.

Son of Kadé. A.H. 866-870. A.D. 1461-1466.

ʿOmár. A despotical reign, spent in dispute with a more powerful and successful rival, Mohammed ben Mohammed, who, in the course of a year, gained the upper hand, and probably killed ʿOmár. Ghomtalú. (Reká?) 1.

Son of ʿAbd Allah. A.H. 871. A.D. 1466.

Mohammed. A courageous and powerful prince. Breda.[192] 5.

Son of Mohammed. A.H. 872-876. A.D. 1467-1471.

ʿAlí. A glorious reign, beginning a new epoch in the history of Bórnu. First of all, ʿAlí Ghajidéni made an end of the civil wars, which had torn and wasted the kingdom for so long a period, having vanquished and killed his old rival ʿOthmán ben Kadé, whom he had formerly dethroned, and who began the struggle once more. He then restored the equilibrium between the different officers of high rank, the excessive power of some of these officers, particularly that of the keghámma[193], having been the principal cause of all those disturbances; and in order to concentrate the government, he built a large capital, Ghasréggomo, generally called Birni, the future residence of the kings of Bórnu, on the river Wáú, three days west from the modern town Kúkawa. For until this period the Bórnu people lived only in temporary encampments in the conquered country, although Nánigham had been the ordinary residence of the kings. It was in this king’s reign, doubtless, that Leo visited Bórnu; and it is by this author that we are informed of one of the many wars which the prince carried on, who, on this account alone, of all the kings of Bórnu, seems to have obtained the surname “el Gházi”—“the warrior,” or rather “the conqueror.” Wángara—that is, the country of the Eastern Mandingoes, about the name and extent of which we shall not leave any doubt in our further inquiries—seems, indeed, to be rather distant from Bórnu, particularly if it be taken into consideration that the nearest provinces were ill subjected; but if the Baramuwása be identical, as can scarcely be doubted, with the frontier-river between Bórgu and Yóruba, Wángara was close to the western frontier of the tributary provinces of Bórnu, and it is only to be attributed to the miserable character of the chronicle, and to the general scantiness of our sources, that we hear nothing of the several expeditions which the Bórnu kings made into the provinces of the Kwára, and of the interesting relation which appears to have existed between Bórnu and some of the Bórgu places, particularly Brúsa. It is moreover to be taken into account, that Wángara probably extended, at that time, more to the east, and almost reached the Kwára. Ghasréggomo. 33.

Son of Dúnama, known generally in Bórnu under the name of Mai ʿAlí Ghajidéni. A.H. 877-909. A.D. 1472-1504.

But the Bulála, the old and inveterate enemies of Bórnu, were not yet humiliated; and it was an inroad of the king of that empire into Bórnu which obliged ʿAlí Ghajidéni (assuming him to be identical, as he certainly is, with Leo’s Íbrahím) to give up the conquest of Wángara. That the name of this king of the Bulála was ʿOmár, as Leo says, we have strong reasons to doubt, and think it another lapse of memory. It was probably Selma, or ʿAbd el Jelíl, the father of the prince whom Edrís, ʿAlí’s son and successor, vanquished. The name ʿOmár seems not to occur at all in the dynasty of the Bulála.

But we have another account, which gives us a glance into the warlike career of ʿAlí Ghajidéni, and informs us of one of his expeditions into the far west. For this account we are indebted to Sultan Béllo, who relates in his “Enfák el misúri fi fat-ha belád el Tekrúri”[194], that Kantá, whose age as a contemporary of ʿAlí ben Dúnama, is fixed by the fact that he lived in the time of Háj Mohammed Áskiá, “having oppressed the inhabitants of the provinces conquered by him,” Sultan “ʿAlí Alij,” as he is called in the translation, marched from Bórnu against him, and beat him near Suráme, his capital (see Vol. IV.), on the ʿAíd el kebír; but not being able to reduce this strong place, ʿAlí was obliged to retire, when Kantá, having collected a large army, followed him till he reached Onghoor (most probably Ngarú), “where they met and fought together, and Kantá won the battle,” without, however, being able to follow up his victory. This war must fall about the very end of the reign of ʿAlí Ghajidéni.

The glory of this reign makes it intelligible how Bórnu, or Bernu, appears in Portuguese maps as early as the year 1489.

Edrís. The worthy son and successor of ʿAlí, who accomplished what remained necessary for the greatness and the peace of the Bórnu empire, viz. the humiliation and subjection of the Bulála. A short time, therefore, after he had ascended the throne, he went with a strong army to Kánem, beat the Bulála prince Dúnama son of ʿAbd el Jelíl, or Selma, at Gharni Kiyála, and entered Njímiye, the old capital of the empire of Kánem and Bórnu, 122 years after King Dáúd had abandoned it (see above, p. 259.). Having then heard, on his return to Bórnu, that Ádim, another son of ʿAbd el Jelíl, had usurped the throne after his brother’s death, he returned once more, vanquished Ádim, and established for a long period the dependency of Kánem upon Bórnu. (Imám Áhmed.) It could only have been Edrís, and not Músa—a name which does not at all occur in the list of the kings of Bórnu—who sent an embassy to Tripoli in the year 1512[195], a circumstance which clearly shows the elevated political views of that king. Of the other achievements of his brilliant career, we are unfortunately deprived by the loss or concealment of the contemporaneous account of his reign by the fákih Masfárma ʿOmár ben ʿOthmán, though I still entertain hopes that the work may some day or other come to light. Waláma. 23.

Son of ʿAlí and ʿAáisha, with the surname of Katarkamábi. A.H. 910-932. A.D. 1504-1526.

Mohammed. A very powerful and mighty king, successful in all directions. He vanquished and killed Kadé the son of ʿAbd el Jelíl and Lifya, who, only forty days after Mohammed had ascended the throne, came to attack him at Nathá; and in consequence of this victory kept Kánem in a state of strict obedience. His reign is very important to us, because he is one of the kings of Bórnu of whose conquests and activity towards the west we have obtained some positive account. For, as we learn from the Christian captive in Tripoli[196], Mohammed fought a great and celebrated battle with the king of Kébbi—probably Tómo, of the dynasty of the Kantá, who founded Birni-n-Kebbi. The “captive,” unfortunately, does not state what was the issue of the battle; but although we cannot agree with Mr. Blau, who interprets the words of our chronicle, “gareb hú ila hedúd el Kabará bememlekettihi,”[197] as if Mohammed had extended his empire as far as Kabara, the harbour of Timbúktu, we must conclude that he was victorious. Finally, to speak of the little we know, it must have been he who sent the embassy to Tripoli in the year 1534, if the date be correct. Ghasréggomo. 19.

Son of Edrís and Zíneb. A.H. 933-951. A.D. 1526-1545.

There is certainly, in the passage of our chronicle which relates to the reign of this king, some degree of confusion; and it is very unfortunate that, after having aspired to a little more completeness, it just becomes exceedingly brief and dry in the most interesting part of the history of the Bórnu kingdom. The confused passage has been taken into account in a preceding comment; and we are not able at present to explain why this energetic prince, who waged war on the opposite borders of his extensive empire, at immense distances from each other, can be said to have resided “nineteen [years] in Ladé.” But the fact may simply have been that he did not like to reside in the large capital or birni, Ghasréggomo, but preferred dwelling in a small neighbouring town; or perhaps it was one of the objects of his ambition to transfer the seat of government, from the place chosen by his predecessors, to some new place of his own choice. Even at the present day there is a place of the name of Ladé in the neighbourhood of Ghambarú; and another one is mentioned by Imám Áhmed, at four short days’ journey on the road to Kánem.

Be this as it may, “the kingdom of Bórnu reached under Mohammed the highest pitch of its greatness.” I here, therefore, add a list of the twelve great offices, or ʿalám, which constituted the chief machinery of the empire, and which are already indicated by Makrízí[198] in the words, “and they have twelve princes.” Imám Áhmed calls these high officers generally “el akáber el áʿalám,” or “erbáb e’ dúleh,” or “el omrá.” They are all mentioned by him, except the gháladíma, the fugúma, and the kaghustémma:—

Kayghámma, or Keghámma, corresponding to the seraskier (or commander-in-chief) of the Turkish empire, and possessing very great power.

Yeríma, or Híríma (both forms occur indiscriminately in Imám Áhmed’s history), the governor of Yerí, or “tsidí Yeríbe,” the district between Birni Ghasréggomo and Múniyó[199], the inhabitants of which are called by Imám Áhmed “áhel e’ shemál.”

Gháladíma, the governor of the Gháladí, a province comprising the western countries, from Ngarú as far as the Kwára (called, by the Kanúri, Kwalla).

Chiróma (generally written by Imám Áhmed Thiróma, or Shiróma), the heir apparent, son or brother of the king.

Fugúma, the governor in the interior of Ghasréggomo, with power over life and death.

Bágharíma, sometimes mentioned as an officer of great importance, who, in the time of the civil wars, often raised his ambition even to the throne; but I have not been able to make out what the department, or province, called bágharí, really was. It has nothing whatever to do with Bagírmi.

Síntelma. This title seems to belong originally to some department connected with the government of Kánem, but what were the duties of its office I cannot say. The title is still common in Bórnu, and will frequently occur in my narrative, though at present it is of little importance.

Kásalma, or Kájelma, governor of the eastern provinces of Kánem.

Kaghustémma, governor of Kaghústi, one of the western districts of Kánem. (See Vol. III. App. II.)

Arjinóma. His province is not exactly known to me, except that it appears from Imám Áhmed, that he belonged to the governors of the northern provinces of the empire, “el omrá e’ shemalíyín.”

Mestréma, or Metréma, chief eunuch of the harím.

Yíroma (not to be confounded with the Yeríma), under the mestréma, but nevertheless, at least in the time of Edrís Alawóma, an office of importance.

The other governors of large towns, such as Wúdi, Díkowa, &c., had the title “mainta;” and there were many smaller charges, such as “búma,” probably signifying a “judge of life and death,” from “bú,” the blood. The king had forty lifeguards, in a narrower sense, men of great authority, called “góma,” twenty at his left hand, and twenty at his right.

I now proceed with the list of the succeeding kings.

ʿAlí. A just prince, who kept Kánem in strict subjection, but whose reign was too short to be of any importance. Zamtam. 1.

Son of Edrís and Zíneb. A.H. 952. A.D. 1545.

Dúnama, surnamed Ghamarámi. Vanquished ʿAbd el Jelíl the son of Kadé the king of Kánem, who, once more assuming the offensive, had come to attack him in his own kingdom at Berberuwá, where Dúnama defeated him, followed him thence to Kánem, and beat him in another battle, in which fell the heir apparent of the throne of Kánem, and several other great men of the Bulála. After this, Kánem once more remained quiet and in a state of subjection; but the people of that country, nevertheless, continued to make predatory incursions into Bórnu. The only other fact which we know of his reign, is that he fortified Ghasréggomo, the capital or birni, built by ʿAlí ben Dúnama. The chronicle, moreover, states that in his reign there was a great famine in Bórnu. It must have been he also who concluded a treaty with Dragút, the famous renegade, in 1555. Ghasréggomo. 19.

Son of Mohammed. A.H. 953-971. A.D. 1546-1563.

ʿAbd Allah, or Dála. Under him nothing very remarkable seems to have happened. After some time, ʿAbd el Jelíl, king of Kánem, whose officers never ceased to make predatory incursions into Bórnu, died, and was succeeded by his son ʿAbd Allah. It is, however, a fact of the highest importance that, under the reign of this Bórnu king, we get the first intimation of the settlements of the Fúlbe, or, as they are called by the Kanúri, the Fellátah (“kabílet el Felatíye”), in Bórnu.[200] In ʿAbd Allah’s reign, also, there is said to have been a great famine in the land. Kítaba. 7.

Son of Dúnama. A.H. 972-978. A.D. 1564-1570.

Edrís Amsámi, This is certainly the most important reign for us, as this excellent and energetic prince found in his imám, Áhmed ben Fúrtua (or ben Sofíya), a trustworthy and able historian, whose work has outlived the dynasty of the Séfuwa, and fallen into my hands. But, unfortunately, it comprises only the first twelve years of his reign, so that of the remaining twenty-one years, equally rich in events, we know nothing at all. The imám Áhmed wrote one part of his work evidently in the year of the Hejra 990 or 991, at the end of Rejeb, in the capital Ghasréggomo; the other part, which contains an account of the expeditions to Kánem, which likewise belong to the first years of the long reign of Edrís, a little later. Aláwo. 33.

Or as he is more generally called, from Aláwo, his place of burial, Alawóma, son of ʿAlí ben Edrís ben ʿAlí ben Ahmed Dúnama ben ʿOthmán ben el Háj Edrís. (not 53.) A.H. 979-1011. A.D. 1571-1603.

Edrís Alawóma seems to have ascended the throne after a short interregnum, during which the reins of government were held by the queen mother, or mágira, ʿAáisha Kel-eghrármarám[201], who appears to have been a very distinguished woman, probably of Berber origin, realizing to the Kanúri the ideal perfection of a female, and therefore called “mai kámobe.” Probably it was she who instilled into her son that harmonious union of warlike courage and vigour on the one hand, with mildness and justice on the other, which were the characteristic qualities of this excellent prince. Not long after his accession to the throne, he appears to have sent, probably under the influence of his mother, an embassy to Tripoli, the secure intercourse with which place was very important for any enterprising prince of Bórnu; and to this intercourse we evidently have to ascribe the very remarkable fact, that this king possessed already a good many musketeers, who decided the issue of the most serious battles. We find also in the imám’s history an interesting account of a numerous caravan arriving from the north with a great many Arab horses for sale. I have no doubt that the French Prisoner in Tripoli was mistaken in ascribing the embassy, which in the year 1578 arrived in that place to ʿAbd Allah instead of to the new prince, who had only a few years previously ascended the throne, and was not yet known on the coast.

With regard to the interior affairs of the kingdom, the principal object of Edrís Alawóma seems to have been to subdue entirely, or even to exterminate, if possible, those heterogeneous elements of which the kingdom had been formed, and which had been allowed by his predecessors (intent on the superficial advantages of distant conquests) to undermine the very strength of the empire. He therefore seems to have turned his attention immediately to the Só, or Soy, who, though evidently greatly reduced from their former predominance and power, yet still possessed many extensive districts and numerous strongholds in the immediate neighbourhood of the principal settlements of the Bórnu people, against whom they not only successfully vindicated their independence, but even continually harassed them by inroads. He therefore first attacked that division of this great tribe which inhabited the fertile districts on the river (Komádugu Wáúbe), and was called Gháffate (Ngaufate?), with several subdivisions, among which we find the names of the Ghidáma and the Dughúti. In order to conquer their extensive and strong capital, Dámasak, he built at some distance from it a large and fortified camp, where he placed a great part of his army, and further north another smaller one. Having harassed the enemy for some time by daily attacks from these places, cutting down their corn and their trees, he at length undertook to besiege the place; and having succeeded in taking it, he killed or carried away its inhabitants, after which the smaller places around shared the same fate. The rest of the people of Dughúti fled to Kánem. He then attacked another large and strong pagan fortress called Ámsaka, or Ámasak, situated between Gamerghú and Mándará, and succeeded in taking it chiefly by means of his muskets. He then proceeded against the tribe of the Gamerghú, who had been left undisturbed by all the preceding kings, and took several of their towns.

Having in this way strengthened the loose structure of his empire towards the east, he turned westward against Kanó[202], a name which by the historian is evidently used only to denote the whole province, and not a single town. Indeed, from what he says about Dalá, it is evident that there was no large town named Kanó at that time. The king succeeded in destroying all the strongholds of the province, which our author expressly states the Kanáwa had then first built, viz. Kazrá, Kelmásana (this seems a Berber name), Majíya, Ukluya, Dulúwo, Auzáki, Ajíyajíya, Saʿayá, Ghálaki, Kayí, and others; but as for Dalá[203], the strongest of these “shokíya” or stockades, he was unable to take it. This Dalá was evidently the village built at the foot of the rocky mount of the same name, which at present forms, for the most part, the quarter of the Arabs in the town of Kanó. After Edrís had humiliated and weakened, in this way, the inhabitants of Kanó, the people of Bórnu continually made predatory expeditions against them.

From this circumstance we are enabled to judge of the state of affairs in these loosely aggregated empires; for Kanó had certainly been long before this period a province of Bórnu.

Edrís Alawóma then directed his efforts towards the north-west, and undertook three expeditions against the Tawárek (Imóshagh) or Berbers, whom he reduced to obedience. The first of these expeditions was called the kerígu or ghazzia of Síktala, or Bútírsa; the second was named after the tribe Dinkir (the Díggera?), settled only two days’ march from Kulíya, against whom it was directed, or after the place Targhígha. These two expeditions seem to have been of secondary importance; the third, however, was directed against the Berbers of Aïr, on which occasion, starting from Át-rébisa[204], and passing the town Ghamarama, he overtook a numerous host of the inhabitants of Ahír, or Aïr, in the open desert, between the town Tádsa and Aïr, and having, as the imám says, made a great slaughter of them, returned to Zibdúwa, thence to the town Susubáki, and, having remained there awhile, retired to Muniyó.[205] Already, at an earlier date than these three expeditions led by him in person, his vizier, Kúrsuwa ben Harún, had fought a battle with the Tawárek, who had come with a numerous host of Tildhin (?)[206], and other people, to attack him at Aghalwen. Having thus broken the strength of those Berber tribes, he ordered the Kil-yíti, or rather Kélwáti[207], who were living in his dominions, to make continual inroads into their territory, till they were obliged to sue for peace, when they were allowed to return to their former seats, vowing a qualified allegiance to the king of Bórnu, while they ceased to yield obedience to the ruler of Aïr.[208] It is to be lamented that the imám Áhmed does not call the inhabitants of Aïr by the name of their tribe, as it would have been a matter of the greatest interest for us to know what tribe of Berbers had possession of the country at the time. It seems that the Kilyíti, or Kelwáti, are identical with the Keléti, or Jotko, who, intermixed with Tebu, are living on the north side of the komádugu, between Dúchi and Yó.

I will here also mention the interesting expedition which Edrís Alawóma undertook some time previously, as it seems, against the Tebu, or Tedá, of the province of Durku, or Dirki, and of Ághram[209] (or Táshi), when, after subjugating the whole country—a measure so important for the communications with the coast—he made a long stay in Bilma, or Bulma. Here we have an example of a similar state of things to those in Kanó; for all this country had long before been tributary to Bórnu. In order to secure facility of access to these distant and inhospitable regions, he built large boats on the komádugu, and collected great herds of camels.

Having thus secured his influence in the far distant northern provinces, Edrís again turned southward against the rebellious Marghí prince Maghaya, and having made an inroad into Kufshi, or Kubshi[210], Mitku, and Humdi (these two last places being situated on or at the foot of a rock), and having made captive a part of the prince’s family, the latter came to Birni and threw dust upon his head. After this the ex-ruler of Mándará (Wándalá), having come to ask his assistance against an uncle who had deprived him of his throne, Edrís marched against Karáwa[211], then the capital of Mándará; but the inhabitants having retreated to the summit of the high mountain which is to the west of the town, he was obliged to retrace his steps without effecting his purpose. However, the next year he returned better prepared, and, sitting down at the foot of the rock, compelled the people of Mándará and their chief to quit their retreat and make their submission; and he then reinstated the rightful prince.

After this King Edrís led his victorious army against the Eastern Nghizim, who had first directed their predatory forays against the Felláta settled in Bórnu[212], but had soon ceased to make any distinction between foreigners and natives, and attacked all who fell in their way. For two years he laid waste their fields, destroying even the plantations of cotton and sesamum, while his vizier Kúrsuwa ransacked the town Meghúluma till he reduced the inhabitants to obedience. He then without delay proceeded against the western Nghizim, called Bináwa by Imám Áhmed. These Bináwa infested all the neighbouring provinces of the empire, and wholly interrupted the communication between Bórnu and an important trading-place in the west, called by our historian Fágha, and probably identical with the Rágha, or Ragháy, mentioned by Ébn Batúta, just in the same quarter, lying between Góber—that is, the original country of that name, with the capital Tínshamán—and Bórnu. Having conquered all their strongholds,—viz. Máwa, Ágham, Báni, and Ghujémbiná[213],—he so terrified the people around, that all, even those of Katágum[214] included, made their submission. The Nghizim are identical with the tribe now generally called Nkizám, which is at present greatly reduced, living in the following places, all lying between Auyók and Katágum:—Táshiná, Únik, Shágató, Chibiay, Belángu, Badda, Rómeri, Zóngolom, Melebétiye, Úmarí, and a few more.

After all these warlike undertakings, this active prince, having rested for a little more than a year, undertook a pilgrimage to Mekka, probably in the ninth year of his reign. Having returned from thence, “Háj Edrís,” as he is now to be styled, led his army against the Tetála, or Telála[215], a warlike and high-spirited pagan tribe settled in the neighbourhood and on the islands of the Tsád (probably identical with the Yediná or, as they are generally named, Búdduma), and whose hatred against their oppressors was so intense that they refused fellowship at meals to those among themselves who had not killed a Mohammedan. They prided themselves chiefly on their white spears. This is exactly in harmony with the custom of the Búdduma. Edrís, in order to subdue them, made use of the Katakú, or Kótokó[216], whom he ordered to harass the enemy by continual incursions with their boats, exactly in the same manner as the sheikh of Bórnu at the present day, when he wants to trouble the Búdduma, orders the people of Máfaté to make an inroad against them. The Tetála retreated into the swampy grounds of the Tsád.[217] Edrís then beat the governor of Mafaté[218], who came to attack him with a number of boats, destroyed the town of Kansa-Kusku, as he had also destroyed Saya[219] and Taghálaghá, belonging to the tribe of the Ghamá, or Ngamá, and other places, and built several fortified encampments, or “sansanne,” in the neighbourhood. The Mákari[220], who seem to be identical with the Kótokó, appear to have offered him friendship or submission, with the exception of the people of Kúsuri[221], whose governor he succeeded in taking prisoner, and of Sabálghutu. He then proceeded once more against Mándará, and vanquished that rebellious and stubborn nation.

We shall now notice, but briefly, the expeditions of Edrís to Kánem, which likewise fall within the first twelve years of his reign, but have been described separately by the imám. I can dismiss this subject here in a few words, as I have had occasion to make use of the rich geographical materials contained in this account in the course of my narrative. Edrís, during the first twelve years of his reign, went five times to Kánem; and he may have gone there frequently again in the following years. We have seen above that Kánem, after having been for more than a century entirely torn off from the empire, had been again subdued by preceding Bórnu kings. Edrís Alawóma, on ascending the throne of Bórnu, concluded a treaty of peace with ʿAbd Allah the ruling prince of Kánem; and, what is very remarkable as a commentary on the state of civilization in these countries, the conditions of this treaty were diplomatically exhibited in two written copies, nothing remaining to be settled but a dispute about three places, viz. Kálliya, ʿAkúta, and Belúji, which the people of Bórnu wished to obtain. But ʿAbd Allah died; and his son Mohammed, who succeeded him, was, after a short time, dethroned by his uncle ʿAbd el Jelíl ben ʿAbd el Jelíl, who broke off the negotiation and refused allegiance. In the struggle which ensued, Edrís was, on the whole, victorious, although the Bórnu army apparently sustained some heavy losses; Njímiye, and all the country even further east, was taken from Kánem; but as soon as Edrís turned his back, ʿAbd el Jelíl, with his light troops, was again there, till the Bórnu king at last conferred the crown of Kánem again upon Mohammed, attaching to him a strong party of native chiefs, chiefly Arabs. However, he was obliged to return once more to that country so difficult to manage, Mohammed having been beaten by his restless adversary. Subsequently he was more successful, and by a stipulation the whole of Kánem as far as Babáliyá was attached to Bórnu. Of subsequent events we are wholly ignorant, and hear no more of Kánem till a recent period. During these expeditions Edrís inflicted severe blows upon the Tebu population of Kánem; and we have already seen that, in consequence, a great number of them migrated to Bórnu.

Of the events of the one-and-twenty years which followed these first twelve years of this excellent prince, we at present know nothing. But I do not doubt that zealous research may hereafter bring some more documents to light. From the manner of Edrís’s death it may be concluded that he waged war till his last moment; for he died, according to tradition, on the battlefield, being wounded in his breast by a hand-bill or góliyó, thrown at him by a pagan concealed in a tree, while waging war with a tribe on the borders of Bagírmi, perhaps the Ghamergú. We only know for certain that he was buried in Aláwo, a place in the district of Ujé, which I have touched upon on my journey to Ádamáwa.

But notwithstanding these continual wars in which the Bórnu hero was engaged, “he promoted the prosperity of the country, and the wealth of the towns.” Indeed this is the only particular which the meagre chronicle relates of him besides mentioning the war with ʿAbd el Jelíl; and we know from Imám Áhmed that he built the mosques of clay in Birni Ghasréggomo, superseding those of reeds; and it is to him probably that we must refer the brick ruins in that town as well as in Ghambarú.

Altogether Edrís Alawóma appears to have been an excellent prince, uniting in himself the most opposite qualities: warlike energy combined with mildness and intelligence; courage, with circumspection and patience; severity, with pious feelings. And I hope my readers will draw more favourable conclusions from this example as to the general character of the Bórnu kings than Denham did from the degenerate shadow of his time, when he says[222] that “a sultan of Bórnu carries no arms, and it is beneath his dignity to defend himself.” Certainly such a man as Edrís rarely stands alone; and we cannot refuse to join with his name that of his first minister, the warlike and intelligent Edrís ben Harún, who succeeded in that office his elder brother Kúrsuwa, and who by his excellent arrangements, as well as by his courage, guaranteed the success of many of his master’s undertakings.

Mohammed, An excellent prince, but less warlike and enterprising, as it would seem, than his father, whose vigour was no longer necessary, the empire being well established. Dekána (?).[223] 16 y. 7 m.

With the surname Bukalmarámi. Son of Edrís and Fanna. (Perhaps in the territory of the Duggana.) A.H. 1011-1027. A.D. 1602-1618.

Íbrahím. Sent an embassy to Tripoli in the year 1627. Ghasréggomo. 7 y. 7 m.

Son of Edrís and Ghumsu. A.H. 1027-1035. A.D. 1618-1625.

Háj ʿOmár. Made the pilgrimage to Mekka in the year 1642, having ascended the throne, according to the French document, in the year 1634 (1624?). Ghasréggomo. 19 y. 9 m.

Son of Edrís and Fisháma. A.H. 1036-1055. A.D. 1625-1645.

ʿAlí A valiant and intelligent man, who thrice made the pilgrimage to Mekka, viz. in the years 1648, 1656, and 1667; when returning on the last occasion from his distant journey, he had to extinguish a revolution. He waged several wars with the sultan of Aïr residing in Ágades, and was once besieged in his capital at the same time by the Tawárek and by the Köana, or Kwona, a division of the Korórofa, who had long been subjected to Bórnu, when he managed to set the latter against the former, and then destroyed them also. It seems that in his reign the country was afflicted by several long famines, which distressed the inhabitants greatly, and which can scarcely be explained but by supposing an unsettled state of the country, which did not allow the people to cultivate the ground. Ghasréggomo. 40.

Ben el Háj ʿOmár. A.H. 1055-1095. A.D. 1645-1684.

Edrís This is the king who has been omitted by mistake in the chronicle. (?) 20.

Ben ʿAlí. A.H. 1096-1115. A.D. 1685-1704.

Dúnama Another long famine of seven years is mentioned by the chronicle. Ghasréggomo. 19.

Ben ʿAlí. A.H. 1115-1134. A.D. 1704-1722.

Háj Hamdún A pious and indolent king, who appears to have made a pilgrimage. Ghasréggomo. 14.

Ben Dúnama. A.H. 1135-1148. A.D. 1723-1736.

Mohammed, Of his reign likewise we know nothing but of a famine which lasted two years. These princes, indeed, seem in general to have seldom left their favourite residence, where they indulged in luxury and ostentation, while the kingdom was falling to pieces and became unable to resist any shock which might come from without. Ghasréggomo. 16.

With the surname Erghámma. Son of El Háj Hamdún. A.H. 1149-1164. A.D. 1737-1751.

Dúnama, The chronicle mentions, under his short reign, a very severe famine. Ghasréggomo. 2 y. 7 m.

With the surname Ghaná, “the little.” The young son of Mohammed. A.H. 1165-1168. A.D. 1752-1755.

ʿAlí Is greatly praised by the chronicle as a most excellent prince; but it is evident that he was such only from a monkish point of view. He seems, however, to have excelled in a peculiar kind of energy, being mentioned by Lucas as the father of three hundred male children.[224] I cannot say with absolute certainty whether it was he who made a most unfortunate expedition against Mándará, to the ill success of which most of the intelligent Bórnu people attribute the weakness of the empire under the following reign, when it was attacked by the fanatic troops of the Felláta, the best part of the army having been slain by the inhabitants of Mándará. ʿAlí seems also to have made several expeditions against the Bedde. 40.

Ben el Háj Dúnama. A.H. 1168-1207. A.D. 1755-1793.

Áhmed “A learned prince, liberal towards the ʿulama; a prodigal dispenser of alms, a friend of science and religion, gracious and compassionate towards the poor.” So says the chronicle. However well deserved this praise may be, certainly Áhmed was not the man to save the kingdom from the dangers which surrounded it. Ghasréggomo. 17.

Ben ʿAlí. A.H. 1208-1225. A.D. 1793-1810.

But although the empire was already prepared for ruin, there supervened a powerful cause of weakness; for under Áhmed a very severe pestilence visited Bórnu, carrying off a great number of people. This plague is said to have been announced by an eclipse of the sun, which preceded it by two years.

About 1808 began the inroads of the Fúlbe or Felláta, who had conquered successfully the ancient Háusa kingdoms, which till then had been in a sort of tributary dependence upon Bórnu. The consequence was that their countrymen, settled in Bórnu from ancient times, as we have seen, being harassed by persecution, collected together in Gújebá, and from that point began their conquests, vanquishing all the officers whom Áhmed sent against them; they then marched against Ghasréggomo, led on by Malá Rída, Mukhtár, and Hanníma, defeated the army of the sultan, who escaped by the eastern gate while they entered the town from the west side. Áhmed then went to reside in Kurnáwa. This happened in the year of the Hejra 1224, or 1809 of our era, on a Sunday; but I cannot say in what month. From that place the distressed king sent a message to the fáki Mohammed el Amín el Kánemí, who, on account of his marriage with the daughter of the governor of Ngála, had begun to oppose himself to the progress of the conquerors; for, having begged his father-in-law to allow him to take his wife and daughter with him to Fezzán, the latter refused, so that the fáki, together with his friends Mohammed Tiráb, and Ibrahím Wádáy collected in Bínder, on the west border of the Tsád, a small force, said to have consisted of five horsemen and two hundred spearmen, with whom he successfully attacked the Fúlbe, who were disposed to laugh at his threats. Having collected more adventurers and patriotic men round him, he then vanquished the whole force of the conquerors in a battle near Ngórnu, when he is said to have had under his command two hundred men on horseback, and two thousand on foot. Having thus liberated the whole eastern part of Bórnu, he sat down quietly, when Áhmed sent for him. Assisted by the inspiring fanaticism of the fáki, and by the courage and valour of his Kánembú spearmen, Áhmed was enabled to re-enter his capital, but soon after died[225], in the beginning, as it seems, of A.H. 1225.

Dúnama, Dúnama followed his father, who had already, in his lifetime, chosen him for his successor, and for a short time waged successful war against the enemy, till he too was driven out of his capital by the Fúlbe of Katágum, as it seems, in the end of 1226, or beginning of 1227. He then went wandering about in his own kingdom, changing his residence every few months, first residing in Majé, near Fátóghaná (the ancient Dámasak), then in a place called Aségga, then near Múngonó, then in Bérberuwá, till he placed himself under the protection of the powerful fáki, who alone had proved himself capable of resisting the victorious impulse which attended the march of the Felláta. Indeed a covenant was then made, assigning half of the revenue of the liberated provinces to Mohammed el Amín. The fáki now resided in the large town of Ngórnu (“the blessing”), where he seems to have found zealous support from the many Tebu residing there, while the sultan held his court in some other place. But matters could not long remain in this state; the population were not able to serve two masters, but they were obliged to decide for the one or the other. When, therefore, the people all flocked to the man who had liberated them from a foreign yoke, the old party excited the sultan’s jealousy, and instigated him to rid himself of his troublesome rival. Mohammed el Amín’s authority, however, was so well established in the goodwill of the people, that on being cited before the sultan he was able to appear before him unattended, while the latter dared not hurt him. The consequence was that the fáki’s, or rather the sheikh’s (shékho—for this title he now began to adopt) influence increased every day, and Dúnama, with his party, made a last effort to release himself from that influence, and to preserve the royal dignity. Indeed he might hope that if he succeeded in establishing his court at a certain distance, he might rally around himself the old partisans of royalty; but before he reached Wúdí, the place he had selected for his residence, one of the principal settlements of the Temághera, and which had been the abode of several of the old Bórnu kings, Mohammed el Amín, who perceived that the time was now come when he must decide whether he was to be subject or ruler, even though he did not aspire to the title of king, had him arrested on the road, and brought back to Bérberuwá. But finding him still obstinate, he deposed him altogether, reproaching him with a wish to betray his country; and then he transferred the title and pomp of a sultan to Mohammed, a brother of Áhmed, and uncle of Dúnama. Mohammed then began to build himself a new residence, which is called by the Arabs Birni jedíd, two miles and a half north-west from Ngórnu. But when Mohammed el Amín saw that this man was no less obstinate than Dúnama, he reinstated the latter again. So that Mohammed, having reigned but a short time, and that only by the will of the usurper, is not mentioned at all by the chronicle. Ngála. 8.

Son of Áhmed, and Mohammed el Amín el Kánemí. A.H. 1225-1233. A.D. 1810-1817, 1818.

We may therefore reckon the commencement of the present dynasty of the Kánemíyín from the year 1814 of our era. It is a very remarkable fact, that an utter stranger to the country should become its ruler; but the struggle was not yet at an end, and could not well be ended without much bloodshed as soon as the fascinating personal influence of the liberator was gone by. The sheikh then, having gone so far, in order to separate his position as far as possible from the memory of the ancient times, founded likewise a new residence, which, from the name of the Adansonia digitata, a specimen of which stood on the spot where he wished to build his house, received the name of Kúka, or rather Kúkawa.[226] Being now fairly installed in the government of a vast but very distracted country, while he allowed the pomp of royalty to be borne by the descendant of the Séfuwa, and perhaps purposely exaggerated it, in order to make it ridiculous, he was anxious at the same time to recover the lost provinces, and to defend the country against its south-eastern neighbour, who, from having been a vassal, had become a dangerous enemy. Indeed he had to sustain a long and sanguinary struggle with Bagírmi, in which he was not always successful. He undertook at first to reduce the overbearing and lawless Burgománda, the ruler of that province, to obedience, with the assistance of ʿAbd el Kerím Sabún, the powerful and intelligent prince of Wádáy; but the latter chose rather to consult his own interests, and after carrying away all the treasures, and even many of the inhabitants of Bagírmi, he even granted to Burgománda some sort of protection in return for an annual tribute to be paid to Wádáy, as we shall see in the following volume. At the same time the intelligent Sabún, whose predecessor Mohammed Sáleh, by the conquest of the province of Fittri, had stept into the place of the pretensions raised by the Bulála, endeavoured to gain more ground in Kánem. Meanwhile the powerful king of Wádáy died (A.D. 1815), but even this event did not relieve the situation of El Kánemí; for, in a sudden and unexpected encounter of the two armies in Kótokó, the eldest and most beloved son of the sheikh was slain in 1816, and in 1817 a bloody battle was lost by him at Ngála, on which occasion the titular sultan Dúnama was slain. Mohammed el Kánemí being frustrated in this way, then entered into a covenant with the ruler of Fezzán; and a combined expedition was organized in the year 1818, which was altogether very successful. The whole of the northern part of Bagírmi was overrun, the large towns of Babáliyá and Gáwi were destroyed, and the sheikh spent a day or two in Más-eñá, the capital of the country; but no decisive blow could be struck, the king with his whole army having retired to Mankhfa and taken up a very strong position defended by the river and a great number of boats.

Ibrahím. Installing in the deceased sultan’s place Ibrám, or Ibrahím, Dúnama’s brother, the sheikh continued the struggle with Bagírmi, and on the 24th of March of the year 1824, as we know from the report of Denham’s expedition, was so fortunate as to gain, on the same battle-field of Ngála, a decided victory over his valiant south-eastern neighbour, which seems to have set him at once at rest. Having thus obtained leisure on this side, and having extinguished a revolt of the Manga, Mohammed el Kánemí seems to have turned his attention westward, in order to recover, if possible, some of the provinces of the old empire of Bórnu. At first he was very successful, and penetrated far into the interior of the province of Bauchi; but in the year 1826 the officers of Sultan Béllo beat his army, and he himself had a narrow escape. He seems to have then concluded a peace. He made also several attempts to reduce Kánem to a state of obedience, and here had to contend with Wádáy. Mohammed el Kánemí died in 1835[227], leaving forty-three sons, and having named for his successor his eldest son ʿOmár, who was to be succeeded, if he should die early, by ʿAbd e’ Rahmán, and then by Yusuf.

A.H. 1233-1263. A.D. 1818-1846.

Sheikh ʿOmár. ʿOmár’s reign is remarkable on account of his having made an end of the Séfuwa altogether. He seemed from the first desirous of peace in every direction, and had the great advantage, in endeavouring to obtain this object from Bagírmi, that his mother belonged to that country. Having also made peace with the Fúlbe after an unsuccessful expedition against them, he had some difficulty in restraining the governors of the western provinces, who are almost independent vassals, from making incursions into their territory. It was on this account that he was obliged, in the beginning of 1846, to send a strong army, commanded by his brother ʿAbd e’ Rahmán, against Ibrám, the restless governor of Zínder, whose obstinate disregard of the peace with the Fúlbe proceeded to open rebellion.

Son of Mohammed el Kánemí.