A Journal of a Tour in the Congo Free State eBook

This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 191 pages of information about A Journal of a Tour in the Congo Free State.

A Journal of a Tour in the Congo Free State eBook

This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 191 pages of information about A Journal of a Tour in the Congo Free State.

On again at daybreak and after one or two ineffectual attempts to negotiate the last strong rapid on this piece of the river we conquer it and reach smooth water.  In the course of the morning a canoe intercepts us in which is a native dressed as a State capita and armed with a gun.  He says he has been sent by a white man to tell us not to sound our tom-toms as it will attract the hostile tribe and they will attack our camp.  We ask for the letter for white men never send verbal messages by natives and when it was not forthcoming became suspicious that our visitor was spying our strength.  We told him that we were peaceful travellers, that we should beat our tom-toms as much as we liked and camp where we wished and that if the tribe attacked us we should defend ourselves.  Probably our rifles made an impression for we were not molested at all during the day and at night camped in the village of the hostile tribe.  Our paddlers indeed fraternised with the enemy, against whom they would have been fighting if they had not been employed by us.

[Illustration:  THE SULTAN OF DJABIR.]

The usual tornado burst in the night and we did not make a start until 7 a.m. when we continued up the river and passed several villages before 2 p.m. when Djabir came in sight.  The view of the town from the distance is very pretty indeed.  In the centre is an old fort with four towers now partly demolished and on each side the houses of the officials stretching along the river bank.  Here we land two hours afterwards and feel that at last we shall have a night’s rest without fear that our habitation will be blown away or soaked with water.

FOOTNOTE: 

[3] Now in the British Museum (Natural History).

CHAPTER VIII.

Across Uele.—­Djabir to Ibembo.

Djabir is a disappointing place.  Although very imposing from a distance it is being rebuilt at present and at close quarters it becomes obvious that some of the old houses are in a very bad state of repair.  Some welcome newspapers meet us here and I am delighted to learn that the Government has passed the Licensing Bill and that the Japanese are still successful.  The Sultan of Djabir sent his brother a young gentleman who has been educated and speaks French, to present a small ivory war-horn and to demand several times its value in cloth.  Afterwards he sold us some other articles but, although he received full value for them he repented of his bargain next day and demanded them back again.  Of course we let him take them.  The Sultan himself seems to be equally difficult to deal with and although the State has given him the rank of Captain in the Force Publique and tried to humour him in every way he is not a good subject.  His village has the usual characteristics with some signs of Arab civilisation.

Copyrights
Project Gutenberg
A Journal of a Tour in the Congo Free State from Project Gutenberg. Public domain.