the Fullans, and six hundred to the Sheikh of
Bornou. The Fullanee Sultan is called Mohammed Bello, and he of the
Sheikh, Sofo Lukudi. The nearest place in Daura is not more than one day
S.W. of Zinder. The people of the country are remarkably expert in the
use of the bow and arrow; and their arrows are very strong, piercing
through, as the people say, _three_ boxes, and afterwards killing a man.
The wound of these arrows is fatal, the flesh of the smitten part rising
up immediately into an enormous swelling. The brother of the present
Sarkee brought in hundreds of slaves from Daura, the people at the same
time having risen against the authority of the Sheikh.
The blacks of Kanou--not the Fullans--do not scarify their faces like
their neighbours. The form of the shonshona of Zinder and its provinces
is four cuts on each side the cheek, but not drawn very near the corner
of the mouth; that is, rather towards the ears. In Tumbi and Gumel,
provinces of Bornou, they draw four on the left side of the cheek and
five on the right side; the cuts not drawn very near either the corner
of the mouth or the ears. Maradee and Kashna have six cuts on each side
of the cheek, drawn from the top of the ears down to the corner of the
mouth. Gouber has four small cuts close to the corner of the mouth. The
people of the Sheikh of Bornou have two small cuts drawn down the face,
under each eyelid, and one in the forehead, between the eyes. Even Mekka
has its shonshona. One of the shereefs here in Zinder, who was born in
that holy city, has three small cuts on each side his face, drawn down
the fleshy part of the cheek. It is only in Mekka that the shonshona is
seen. The other countries of Arabia do not use this disfigurement.[16]
[16] Many Egyptians, men and women, practise tattooing; and if I
mistake not, I have seen evidences of the existence of the
practice mentioned in the text in some parts of Egypt.--ED.
The Sheikh Lousou sent his slave to salute me on his part. They say,
that had we been committed to his care, he would not have fleeced us
like En-Noor. But I almost question if he would have been strong enough
to protect us. I observe, again, that all the Tuaricks are well behaved
in Zinder, and have a wholesome dread of the Sheikh.
Many of the domestic slaves in Zinder are constantly ironed, for fear
they should run away to the neighbouring towns and villages. The poor
people live just like convicts. It is only when
|