Africa : past and present ; a concise history of the country, its history, geography, explorations, climates, productions, resources, population, trib

Preface

HE interest which is now felt by all classes in everything relating to Africa has suggested to the Author the propriety of giving to the public the results of his own observations and researches during his residence and travels, both in the western and southern sections of the great continent, together with such information as he has been able to glean from the various works that he has read upon the subject during the half-century which has elapsed since his attention was first drawn to the study of this interesting quarter of the globe.

By careful analysis, arrangement, and condensation, the writer has endeavoured to make the present volume, not only a work of interest to the general reader, but also a portable, cheap, and convenient handbook of reference on the subjects of which it treats for missionaries, merchants, travellers, emigrants, and others who wish for reliable information on the history, geography, iv Preface.

climate, resources, and productions of Africa ; and the character, manners, customs, and social condition of its inhabitants ; together with what has been done, and what yet remains to be done, to promote their moral and religious improvement.

How far the Author has succeeded in his aim must be left for the reader to judge. It is hoped that the index, map, and illustrations will add to the value of the volume, and contribute to its general and permanent usefulness.

W. MOISTER.

Sedbergh, Yorkshire,

November 15M, 1879.

CHAPTER I. Early Adventure and Discovery

PAG

Herodotus and Strabo — Arab Travellers — Portuguese Discoveries — French Discoveries — British African Association — Mungo Park — Sundry Travellers — Tuckey and Peddie — Gray and Laing — Ritchie and Lyon — Denham and Clapperton — Laing and Caillie . . i

CHAPTER n.

Recent Adventure and Discovery.

Richard and John Lander — Laird and Oldfield — Coulthurst and Davidson — Niger Expedition — Barth, Krapf and Rebmann — Burton and Speke — Grant and Baker — Dr. Livingstone, Stanley, and Cameron .... . • • • S3

CHAPTER HI.

Slavery and the Slave Trade.

Prevalence of Slavery — Sources of Slavery — Uses of Slaves — Treatment of Slaves — The Slave Trade — Methods of Procuring Slaves — The Middle Passage — Slaves in Exile — Abolition of the Slave Trade — Emancipation of Slaves — Work Still to be Done . . . loi vi

Conteyits.

CHAPTER IV.

Northern Africa.

r

Africa in General — Egypt — Nubia — Abyssinia — Tlie Barbary States — Barca — Tripoli — Tunis — Algiers — Morocco

CHAPTER V.

Western Africa.

Geographical Boundaries — Topographical Aspect and Scenery — • Mountains and Rivers — Climate and Seasons — Soil and Productions — Native Tribes — Manners and Customs — Superstitious Notions and Practices — Colonization and Missions — Sierra Leone — The Gambia — The Gold Coast— Lagos — Liberia — Senegal — Fernando Po — Angola ........

CHAPTER VI.

Southern Africa.

General Description — Mountains, Rivers, and Lakes — Soil, Productions, and Climate— Native Tribes and Settlers — European Colonization— The Cape Colony — Western Province — The Cape Colony — Eastern Province — British Kaffraria — The Colony of Natal — The Orange, Free ^tate — The Transvaal — Neighbouring Territories ...........

CHAPTER VII.

Eastern and Central Africa.

General Outline — Rivers and Harbours — Native Tribes and Settlers — Portuguese Colonization — DelagoaBay — Mozambique — Quillimane — Zanzibar — Aden — Christian Missions— Makololo Mission — Lfniversities' Mission — Livingstonia Mission at Lake N'yassa — London Society's Mission at Lake Tanganyika — Church Society's Mission at Lake N'yanza — Conclusion .......

ILLUSTRATIONS.

I'ACE

I. Map of Africa ...... To face Title Page.

II. Hippopotami at the Falls of Barraconda, River Gambia . 13

III. Falls of Govinia, River Senegal, in the Rainy Season . . 22

IV. Canoe Travelling on the River Niger ..... 56 V. Lake Tanganyika, as seen from the South . . . .82

VI. Slaves on their March from the Interior to the Coast . .114 VII. Women Pounding Corn for Cus-cus at the Gambia . . 140 VIII. African Village and Palaver Tree ...... 170

IX. Fort and Town of Elmina ....... 200

X. Kumasi, the Capital of Ashanti . . _ . . . . 216

XI. The Island of Goree ........ 226

XII. Port and Shipping at the Mouth of the Gaboon . . . 240

XIII. Village of Slengelly, Delagoa Bay 270

XIV. Slave Market at Zanzibar ....... 300

XV. Steamer Point, Aden 337

XVI. Dining on the Banks of the Upper Shire .... 356 XVII. Camp at Kigoma on the Borders of Tanganyika . . . 365

CHAPTER I.

EARLY ADVENTURE AND DISCCVERY.

Herodotus and Strabo — Arab Travellers — Portuguese Discoveries — Early English Discoveries — French Discoveries — British African Association — Mungo Park — Sundry Travellers — Tuckey and Peddie — Gray and Laing — Ritchie and Lyon — Denham and Clapperton — Laing and Caillie.

HROUGHOUT the entire range of modern geography

1 we find no country more interesting in its general features, or presenting stronger claims upon the attention of the Christian philanthropist than Africa. And yet it is a remarkable fact that, until a comparatively recent period, the interior regions of this vast continent remained almost entirely unknown to the civilized nations of the earth. It is true, Egypt and Nubia on the borders of the Red Sea, and Libya, Carthage and other districts on the shores of the Mediterranean, were well known to the ancients ; but all beyond appears to have been a veritable terra hicognita. Hence it becomes an interesting inquiry — At what periods, and by what means, were the more distant shores of Africa explored, and the inner regions of the great continent partially made known to the rest of the world ? An answer to this question may appropriately form the subject of the present and following chapters, as introductory to the account we have to give of the country itself, the character of the people by whom it is inhabited, and the means which have been at different times employed for their civil, social, and moral elevation.

I

Africa: Past and Present.

Herodotus and Strabo.

The earliest instance we find on record of African exploration inland is that of Herodotus, the celebrated Greek historian ; who, when collecting information respecting the whole world for his great historical work, was obliged, in the absence of written documents, to have recourse to travelling. His published narrative is almost entirely the record of what he saw and heard during his various peregrinations ; and, even at this distant period, it possesses an interest superior to that of most ancient writings. By means of a long stay in Egypt, and an intimate acquaintance with the native priests, he obtained much information respecting the wide region which extends from the Nile to the Atlantic. But not satisfied with this, he took an extensive jpurney into the interior of the country. He justly describes it as much inferior in fertility to the cultivated parts of Europe and Asia, and as suffering severely from drought. On quitting the northern coast, which he terms the " forehead of Africa," the country became more and more arid. He speaks of hills of salt, out of which the natives constructed their houses without any fear of their melting beneath a shower, in a region where rain was almost unknown. As he proceeded, the land became almost a desert, and was filled with such multitudes of wild beasts as to make travelling extremely dangerous. Farther to the south the sandy barren soil no longer afforded food even for these fierce tenants of the wilderness : there was not a blade of grass, a tree, or a fountain of water to be seen ; total silence and widespread desolation reigned, so that he was obliged to return. Such is the general picture which Herodotus draws of this northern boundary of the great African desert, which subsequent examination has found to be on the whoJe fairly correct.

Strabo, who wrote at a subsequent period, and after the Roman sway was fully established over the northern coast of Africa, gives an interesting account of some of the interior states. He does not, like Herodotus, profess to have visited the countries which he describes, but simply records the infor-

Early Adventure and Discovery.

mation which he had obtained from others. Extending his view beyond the Atlas, he describes the Mauri as peopling a rich country on the Atlantic coast, capable of yielding the most abundant harvests ; but nothing could wean the nation from a wandering life, in which they delighted, moving continually with their tents from place to place, wrapped in skins of wild beasts, and riding without saddle, and often without bridle, on small, swift-footed, active horses. He represents them as fighting with swords and spears, and not with poisoned arrows, as Horace had described some warlike African tribes when engaged in furious contests with each other. Further information has proved that both these weapons, and many other dangerous missiles, are used by different savage nations inhabiting the continent of Africa.

Arab Travellers.

The first to penetrate the interior of Africa for the purposes of trade and commerce, and to notice the character of the country and the people, were the enterprising Arabs. At an early period they introduced the camel, which, though a native of the s^ndy wastes of Arabia, was equally adapted to the still more extensive deserts which stretch so widely over many parts of Africa. By means of these patient creatures, sometimes called "the ships of the desert," the mercantile adventurers alluded to, everywhere known as " Moors," pushed their way through the narrowest parts of the great Sahara to the more fertile and populous regions of the interior, where they propagated the Moslem faith and carried on a lucrative trade with the various negro tribes among whom they sojourned. We are indebted to some of these semi-civilized adventurers for our earliest knowledge of Inner Africa, their narratives having come down to us in the Arabic language. Allowance being made for the high colouring which frequently characterizes these narratives, much useful information may be gathered from them, as some of the parties concerned were professed travellers as well as traders. A specimen or two of the most interesting.

Africa : Past and Present.

and apparently the most reliable, of these early explorations is all that our limited space will permit us to give, purposely omitting accounts of African travels which are evidently fabulous.

It is recorded of Ibn Batuta, a learned Mohammedan who flourished in the fourteenth century, that he commenced his great journey to the interior of Africa from Fez. He went first to Segilmissa, which he describes as a handsome town situated in a country abounding with date trees. Having joined a caravan, he came, after a journey of twenty-five days, to Thaghari, a place celebrated for its mine of salt, where the native huts were built of slabs of that mineral, and roofed with camels' hides. Thence he went in twenty days to Tashala, three days beyond which commenced a desert of the most dreary aspect, where there was neither water, bird, nor tree, — " nothing but sand and hills of sand." In ten days more he reached Abu Latin, a large trading town, crowded with native merchants from various parts of the continent. From Abu Latin our adventurer proceeded in twenty-four days to Mali, then the most flourishing city in that part of the interior. Here the traveller was astonished by the immense size of the trees, in the hollow trunk of one of whigh he observed a weaver plying his trade ! In this part of his journey Ibn Batuta saw an immense river, probably the Niger ; and the view necessarily led to a conclusion opposite to that hitherto entertained by his countrymen, who considered it as flowing eastward to the ocean. Having no opportunity of making a complete observation, he fell into the opposite error, afterwards prevalent in Northern Africa, and identified it with the Nile. From Mali he turned northward to Timbuctu. This city was then governed by a negro viceroy, and was far from possessing the celebrity and importance which it afterwards attained. He next proceeded eastward by Kawkaw, Bardama, and Nakda, where he seems to have been near Nubia, but gives no further details till he again arrived at Fez.

About two centuries after Ibn Batuta, a very full description of Africa was furnished by a geographer named Leo, who was even honoured with the surname of Africanus. He was a native of Grenada, in Spain ; but having, after the capture of that city by Ferdinand, repaired to Fez, he acquired a knowledge of Arabic learning and of the African continent. He afterwards travelled through a great part of the interior ; and having, on his return, made his way to Rome, he wrote a narrative of his journey under the auspices of Pope Leo X. It appears from this account that Timbuctu, at the time of his visit, had risen to the position of a powerful and important city, — the centre of commerce and wealth in that part of Africa. Ghana, once possessed of imperial dignity, had changed its name to Kano, and become tributary to Timbuctu. Bornou appears under its present appellation ; and some native sovereigns, who afterwards held conspicuous rank, are mentioned for the first time. The names of several prominent places are also readily identified with those mentioned by subsequent travellers. At Timbuctu several of the Moorish merchants were exceedingly opulent, and two of them had obtained princesses in marriage. Literature was cultivated with ardour, and Arabic manuscripts bore a higher price than any other commodity. Izchia, the king, who had subdued all the neighbouring countries, maintained an army of three thousand horse and a numerous infantry, partly armed with poisoned arrows. Gold, for which its capital had now become the chief mart, was lavishly employed in the embellishment of his court and person ; some of his ornaments weighing as much as 1300 ounces ! The royal palace and several mosques were built of stone ; but the ordinary habitations, as in all towns and villages of Central Africa, were merely bell-shaped huts, the materials of which were stakes, clay, and reeds.

Portuguese Discoveries.

Little more was done in the way of exploring the distant coasts and interior regions of Africa till towards the end of the fifteenth century, when the different nations of Europe began to awake from the slumber and apathy in which they had been so long involved. The invention of the mariner's compass, the skill of the Venetian and Genoese pilots, and the knowledge which had been transmitted from former times, inspired all classes with the hope of being able to pass the ancient geographical barriers of the globe, and to throw light upon regions hitherto unknown. Portugal, a nation of comparatively small resources, but of remarkable energy, started first in this career of maritime and geographical enterprise, and took the lead for a considerable period of all the European states. During the reign of its kings John and Emanuel, it stood pre-eminent in this respect ; and Prince Henry in particular — a younger son of John I. — devoted all his thoughts to the promotion of naval undertakings.

No idea had been entertained at this early period of the new world afterwards discovered by the daring and enterprising Columbus. The local position of their country, its wars and expeditions against Morocco, suggested the thought that the western border of Africa was the best field for research. The information respecting this coast was at that time very limited ; so that the passage of Cape Bojador by GiHanez, in 1433, caused a surprise and admiration almost equal to what were afterwards excited by the discovery of America. On a second attempt at exploration rapid progress was made along the shore of the great Sahara, and the Portuguese navigators were not long in reaching the fertile regions watered by the Senegal and the Gambia. The early part of this voyage was dreary in the extreme, for the mariners saw nothing but naked rocks and burning sands stretching far away into the interior in every direction. Beyond Cape Blanco, however, Nuno Tristan, in 1443, discovered the Island of Arguin ; and, notwithstanding the disaster of Gonzalo de Cintra, who, in 1445, was killed by a party of Moors at that place, the Portuguese made it for some time their head-quarters, whilst they undertook further explorations on the neighbouring continent.

The researches of the Portuguese on the western coast of

Early Adveiiture and Discovery.

Africa, at this early period, were stimulated by the hope of discovering and opening an intercourse with a distinguished sable prince of whom they had heard much under the mysterious appellation of " Prester John." This singular name seems to have been first introduced by travellers from Eastern Asia, who represented the imaginary person to whom it was applied as reigning in unexampled splendour in some part of the interior of Africa. What were the precise expectations from intercourse with this far-fame|i personage does not fully appear ; but the idea was thoroughly rooted in the minds of the navigators, that they would be raised to a matchless height of glory and renown if they could by any means arrive at his court. The same delusion seems to have prevailed at home, for the principal instruction given to all officers employed in African service was, that in every quarter and by every means they should endeavour to effect this grand discovery. They accordingly never failed to put the question to all the wanderers of the Desert, and to every caravan that came from the interior, if they knew anything of the dwelling-place of Prester John. But all their inquiries were in vain : such a person had never been heard of; and we need scarcely add that, being a mere myth, he was never found.

In 1446 Diniz Fernandez discovered Cape Verd, and in the following year Lancelot, another Portuguese navigator, entered the mouth of the Senegal. In this neighbourhood the mariners found fertile and populous regions, that promised to reward their exertions much more effectually than the visionary name after which they had so eagerly inquired. A circumstance occurred also at this time which was regarded as peculiarly auspicious. An African prince of the Jalloff nation, named Bemoy, came to the Portuguese at Arguin, complaining that he had been driven from the throne of his ancestors, and entreating the aid of the strangers to enable him to recover his crown, which he was willing, he said, to wear as their ally, and even as their vassal. He was received with open arms, and conveyed to Lisbon soon afterwards, where he met with a

Africa : Past and Present.

brilliant reception, being entertained with bull-fights, puppetshows, and other kindred amusements. After being instructed in the Christian religion, according to the rites of the Romish Church, he was baptized, and did homage to the King and to the Pope for the crown which was to be placed on his head through their influence on his return to his native land. At length an expedition was fitted out, under the command of Pero Vaz d'Acunha, to convey the young prince to his own country on the banks of th^ Senegal. The conclusion of this adventure was, however extremely tragical ; for, a quarrel having arisen between Bemoy and the commander of the ship in which he sailed, the latter stabbed the prince on board of his vessel, and thus an end was put to this strange enterprise.

The Portuguese continued to prosecute their African discoveries till 1 47 1, when they reached the Gold Coast, where, dazzled by the importance and splendour of the commodity, the commerce of which gave name to the region, they built Elmina, with its fort and other appendages, and made it the capital of their possessions on that part of the continent. Pushing onward to Benin, they received a curious account of a powerful African sovereign, whose kingdom was said to be situated at a distance of seven or eight hundred miles from the coast. From the statements made of the splendour which surrounded this sable monarch, the strangers for a time indulged the pleasing but delusive hope that he might prove to be the far-famed Prester John, of whom they had been so long in search ; but their most careful inquiries resulted in disappointment, as before.

In 1484 Diego Cam sailed from Elmina in quest of new shores, on which the cross might be planted as an emblem of national dominion, according to the instructions which he had received from the king of Portugal. After passing Cape St. Catharine, he found himself involved in a very strong current setting out from the land, which was still distant ; and the water, when tasted, was ascertained to be fresh. It was conjectured, from these circumstances, that he was near the mouth of a large river, which proved to be the case, and it is now well known as the Zaire or Congo. On reaching the southern bank of the magnificent stream, Diego landed and- erected his first monument, indicative of his claim to the country. On ascending the river for a short distance, he came in contact with some of the inhabitants, and inquired after the residence of their sovereign. They pointed to a place at a considerable distance in the interior, and undertook to guide thither a mission, which they pledged themselves, within a given period, to lead back in safety. As the natives in the meantime passed and repassed between the shore and the vessel with the utmost freedom and confidence, Diego basely took advantage of a moment when several of the principal persons were on board, weighed anchor and stood out to sea.

Great was the consternation of the simple-minded negroes when they found themselves floating away from their native shores in the white man's big ship. Diego tried to soothe them as best he could, by endeavouring to make them understand, by signs and otherwise, that this step was taken solely to gratify the anxious desire of his sovereign to see and converse with these African chiefs — assuring them that in fifteen moons they should be brought back in safety to their native land. He then sailed for Lisbon, where he exhibited with triumph these living trophies of his wonderful discoveries. The king was much pleased, and held many conversations with the sable strangers, whom he loaded with honours, and caused to be conveyed back to their own country within the appointed time.

On arriving in the mouth of the river, Diego was highly gratified to see waiting on the shore the portion of the crew whom he had left behind as pledges of his return, and concerning whom he had felt some anxiety. He found the natives on shore disposed to be quite friendly, their confidence in the pale-faced strangers being increased by the safe return of their fellow-countrymen, after witnessing the strange sights of Europe. Diego was now invited to the native court, where the sable lO Africa: Past and Present.

sovereign not only received him with kindness, but agreed to embrace Christianity, and to send several of his nobles to Portugal to be instructed in its principles. They soon afterwards sailed accordingly, and their arrival at Lisbon gave fresh satisfaction to the king and his people. They remained two years in Europe, experiencing the best treatment ; and, on being considered ripe for baptism, the king stood godfather to the principal envoy, and his chief courtiers to others ; on which occasion the African converts received the names of the distinguished persons by whom they had been thus honoured.

In 1490 a new armament was fitted out, under the command of Ruy de Sousa, to convey this party of Africans back to their native land, and to take more formal possession of the country. The Portuguese, on their arrival once more at the mouth of the Congo, were received by the sable monarch and his people with great pomp, and the most extravagant manifestations of barbaric joy. The native troops were drawn up to grace the occasion, and advanced towards the shore in three lines, making a prodigious noise with horns, kettledrums, and other rude instruments. The king was seated on an ivory chair raised on a platform, dressed in rich and glossy skins of wild beasts, with a bracelet of brass hanging from his left arm, a horse's tail pending from his shoulder, and a head dress of fine cloth woven from the palm-tree of the country. He gave full permission to the strangers to settle in his dominions, to build a church, and to propagate the Christian religion. The king himself and all his nobles were forthwith baptized ; and the freest scope was allowed to the Roman Catholic missionaries who accompanied the expedition to prosecute their appointed work.

Here was a fine opportunity of introducing the pure light of the Gospel into a benighted land ; but it is to be feared that the Romish priests brought by the Portuguese did not duly improve it, or proceed in a manner that was likely permanently to benefit the people. They baptized the poor ignorant natives by hundreds and thousands, it is true, and adapted the ceremonies and gaudy processions of their Church in a great measure to the heathen rites and superstitions of the people ; but they were left in the grossest pagan ignorance, without any adequate idea of the principles of Christianity which they were made to profess. It is, moreover, admitted by Portuguese historians that physical force was frequently employed to bring the natives more completely under tire will of the priests. The accounts given of some of the floggings which took place, of both males and females, would be alternately shocking and ludicrous if it were not for the fact that they were associated with the propagation of religion. The ultimate result of such a system might have been easily foreseen. After a long career of superstition and folly, and of the so-called success of the mission, the priests came into collision with the chiefs and people on the subject of polygamy and other matters, and they were summarily expelled from the country. At what period this occurred does not appear ; but when subsequent travellers explored the banks of the Congo in the following century, they found no trace of Christianity or of the labours of the Romish missionaries, nor any traditions among the natives of their ever having been there.

Early English Discoveries.

In the early part of the seventeenth century a change had passed over the relative positions of the mercantile and maritime powers of Europe. Portugal had been eclipsed by Spain, France, and Holland in succession. The last-named power had wrested from the Portuguese their far-famed African settlement Elmina, and usurped their position and influence on that part of the coast. At the same time a spirit of enterprise was awakened in England such as had never been known before. In 1618 a company was formed in London for the purpose of exploring the Gambia, with the impression that that noble river might prove a highway into the interior, and to the wealthy neighbourhood of Timbuctu, if it were not in fact

Afj'ii a : Past and Present.

an outlet of the mighty Joliba, or Niger, as some geographers supposed.

The first person employed in this service was Richard Thompson, a man of considerable spirit and enterprise, who was sent out in the autumn of the same year, in charge ot the brig Catharine, 120 tons burden, with a cargo worth about p^2,ooo. In the month of December he entered the river ; and proceeded as high as Kassan, where he left his vessel and most of his crew, and pushed on in boats. The Portuguese, who were still numerous in that district, and retained all their lofty claims, were seized with bitter jealousy of this expedition, made by a foreign and rival power. Led on by Hector Nunez, they furiously attacked the party left at Kassan and made a general massacre of our countrymen. Thompson was greatly distressed on hearing the dreadful tidings that several of his men had thus fallen by the hand of violence ; but he was too weak to avenge the slaughter of his people. He nevertheless prosecuted his discoveries with vigour, and sent home the most encouraging accounts of the general prospects of his undertaking. The company, influenced by his statements, sent out another vessel, which unfortunately arrived at the most unhealthy season of the year, and lost most of tlie crew by death. Yet they were not dismayed ; but forthwith fitted out a third and larger expedition, consisting of the Sion, of 200 tons, and the St. John, of 50, and gave the command to Richard Jobson, to whom we are indebted for the first reliable and satisfactory account of the great riverdistricts of Western Africa.

Jobson entered the Gambia in the month of November, 1620 ; and the first intelligence he received on reaching Fort James was that of the death of Thompson, his predecessor, who had perished by the hands of his own men. Mutiny was not uncommon in those days ; but how it arose in this instance, or who was to blame, never seems to have been fully investigated. The crew of the Catharine are said to have been unanimous in representing the conduct of their commander as oppressive and tyrannical ; but in regard to a man of undoubted courage and enterprise, and who was the first Englishman who fell in the cause of African discovery of which we have any record, we should, in the absence of direct evidence, cherish a spirit of Christian charity. Notwithstanding the shock caused by this sad disaster, Jobson took courage, and pushing briskly up the river, soon arrived at Kassan, the rendezvous of the former expedition. The Portuguese inhabitants of that neighbourhood had most of them fled before his arrival, whilst the few who remained professed, in respect to the notorious Hector Nunez and the massacre committed by him, both ignorance and horror; but there was reason to believe that they were planning fresh schemes of mischief.