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critical towards the close of the month, when, having once more left the town for the tents, we received in formation that a fresh party had arrived from the capital with the strictest orders to take me dead or alive. Being therefore afraid that my people, whom I had left in the town, frightened by the danger, might be induced to send my luggage out of the house where I was lodged, I sent in the course of the night the servant whom I had with me at the time, with strict orders not to move anything; but, before he reached the town, my other people had sent away my two large boxes to Táleb el Wáfi, the storekeeper of the Sheikh. But fortunately I did not sustain any loss from this proceeding, nothing being missing from these boxes, notwithstanding they had been left quite

open.

Thursday, Having passed a rather anxious night, Dec. 1st. with my pistols in my girdle, and ready for any emergency, I was glad when, in the morning, I saw my boy return accompanied by Mohammed el 'Aísh. But I learned that the people of the town were in a state of great excitement, and that there was no doubt but an attack would be made upon my house the next morning. Thus much I made out myself; but, having no idea of the imminence of the danger, in the course of the day I sent away my only servant with my two horses, for the purpose of being watered. But my Tawáti friend seemed to be better informed, and taking his post on the rising ground of the sandy downs, on

CHAP. LXIX.

APPROACH OF A HOST.

493

the slope of which we were encamped, kept an anxious look out towards the town. About dhohor, or two o'clock in the afternoon, he gave notice of the approach of horsemen in the distance, and while I went into my tent to look after my effects, Mohammed el Khalil rushed in suddenly, crying out to me to arm myself. Upon this I seized all the arms I had, consisting of a double-barrelled gun, three pistols, and a sword; and I had scarcely come out when I met the Sheikh himself with the small six-barrelled pistol which I had given him in his hand. Handing one of my large pistols to Mohammed ben Mukhtár, a young man of considerable energy, and one of the chief followers of the Sheikh, I knelt down and pointed my gun at the foremost of the horsemen who, to the number of thirteen, were approaching. Having been brought to a stand by our threatening to fire if they came nearer, their officer stepped forward crying out that he had a letter to deliver to the Sheikh; but the latter forbade him to come near, saying that he would only receive the letter in the town, and not in the desert. The horsemen, finding that I was ready to shoot down the first two or three who should approach me, consulted with each other and then slowly fell back, relieving us from our anxious situation. But, though reassured of my own safety, I had my fears as to my servant and my two horses, and was greatly delighted when I saw them safely return from the water. However, our position soon became more secure in consequence of the arrival of Sídi A'lawáte, accompanied

by a troop of armed men, amongst whom there were some musketeers. It now remained to be decided what course we should pursue, and there was great indecision, A'lawáte wanting to remain himself with me at the tents, while the Sheikh returned to the town.

But besides my dislike to stay any longer at the encampment, I had too little confidence in the younger brother of the Sheikh to trust my life in his hands, and I was therefore extremely delighted to find that El Bakáy himself, and Mohammed el 'Aísh, thought it best for me to return into the town. At the moment when we mounted our horses, a troop of Kélhekíkan, although not always desirable companions, mounted on mehára, became visible in the distance, so that in their company we re-entered Timbúktu, not only with full security, but with great éclat, and without a single person daring to oppose our entrance; though Hammádi, the Sheikh's rival, was just about to collect his followers in order to come himself and fight us at the tents. Frustrated in this plan, he came to my protector in his "msíd," or place of prayer in front of his house, and had a serious conversation with him, while the followers of the latter armed themselves in order to anticipate any treachery or evil design, of which they were greatly afraid. But the interview passed off quietly, and, keeping strict watch on the terrace of our house, we passed the ensuing night without further disturbance.

This happened on the 1st of December; and the following morning, in conformity with the Sheikh's

CHAP. LXIX. LETTER FROM HAMDA-ALLA'HI.

495

protest, that he would receive the emír of HamdaAlláhi's letter only in Timbúktu, the messenger arrived; but the latter being a man of ignoble birth called Mohammed ben Såíd, the character of the messenger irritated my host almost more even than the tenor of the letter, which ordered him to give me and my property up into the hands of his (the emir's) people. After having given vent to his anger, he sent for me, and handed me the letter, together with another which had been addressed to the emír Kaúri, and the whole community of the town, Whites as well as Blacks (el bedhán ú e' sudán), threatening them with condign punishment, if they should not capture me, or watch me in such a manner that I could not escape.

The serious character which affairs had assumed, and the entire revolution which my own personal business caused in the daily life of the community, were naturally very distressing to me, and nothing could be more against my wish than to irritate the fanatical and not powerless ruler of Hamda-Alláhi. It had been my most anxious desire from the beginning, to obtain the goodwill of this chief by sending him a present, but my friends here had frustrated my design; and even if in the beginning it had been possible, a supposition which is more than doubtful, considering the whole character of the Fúlbe of Hamda-Alláhi, it was now too late, as Séko A'hmedu had become my inveterate enemy, and I could only cling with the greater tenacity to the only trustworthy

protector whom I had here, the Sheikh El Bakáy. In acknowledgment therefore of his straightforward conduct, I sent him, as soon as I had again taken quiet possession of my quarters, some presents to distribute among the Tawárek, besides giving the head man of the latter a small extra gift, and some powder and Hausa cloth to distribute among our friends. However, my situation remained very precarious. As if a serious combat was about to ensue, all the inhabitants tried their firearms, and there was a great deal of firing in the whole town, while the Morocco merchants, with 'Abd e' Salám at their head, endeavoured to lessen the Sheikh's regard for me, by informing him that not even in their country (Morocco) were the Christians treated with so much regard, not only their luggage but even their dress being there searched on entering the country. But the Sheikh was not to be talked over in this manner, and adhered to me without wavering for a moment. He then sat down and wrote a spirited and circumstantial letter to Séko A'hmedu, wherein he reproached him with attempting to take out of his hands by force a man better versed in subjects of religion than he, the emír himself, who had come from a far distant country to pay him his respects, and who was his guest.

The following day, while I was in the company of the Sheikh, the emír Kaúri and the kádhi San-shírfu, together with several other principal personages, called upon him, when I paid my compliments to

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