CHAPTER II.

THE HARBOUR OF THE SHEPHERDS."

MASSOWAH, like Suakin, stands on a coral island. It used to be famous for the gold, ivory, elephants, buffalo hides, and slaves, exported from it; besides which, pearls were found along its coast.

Bruce says that Massowah" means the harbour of the shepherds, and that it was one of those towns on the west side of the Red Sea, the conquest of which followed that of Arabia Felix, by Sinian Pacha, under Selim, Emperor of Constantinople. At first it was governed by a Pacha from Constantinople, and several unsuccessful expeditions to conquer Abyssinia were attempted from it. The tribe who lived on the mainland were then, as now, shepherds; and when the Turks, finding that they could not achieve the conquest of Abyssinia, and that under their oppressive government the trade of Massowah was rapidly falling away, withdrew the Pachalick, the chief of this tribe was appointed Naib (civil governor), of the island, in reward for the assistance his people had rendered the Turks in conquering it.

Massowah is entirely dependent on the mainland for food and water, and the Naib, when the Turkish

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protection was withdrawn to a distance, thought it best to secure his position by entering into a treaty with the Abyssinians, by which he agreed to give them half the custom duties he received, on condition of remaining undisturbed in his government. Then did the Abyssinians acquire a right to receive tribute from Massowah, which they still declare belongs to them. In time the Naibs ceased to pay tribute altogether, either to the Porte, or Abyssinia, though they still received their firmans, as a matter of form, from the Sublime Porte, and from time to time both the Porte and Abyssinia claimed their tribute, and threatened to enforce its payment.

Things were still in this state a hundred years ago. Between 1810 and 1860 the Turks do not seem to have done much to disturb the west coast of the Red Sea, though they never lost an opportunity of saying that it belonged to them, and exercising some control over the governors of Massowah. But these fifty years of tranquillity were soon to be followed by a great change. In 1866 the Turkish government handed Massowah over to Egypt, who took possession of it on May 30th of that year, and not only sent troops there, but also established military stations on different points of the mainland, and distributed dresses of honour to the chiefs, whom she proclaimed to be her dependents. At first these measures did not much affect the people of the coast, as they still paid no tribute, and had yet to learn that the provinces annexed by Egypt only enjoy this sort of immunity until a favourable opportunity

occurs for enforcing the heavy and unjust taxes which oppress the rest of the country.

I fear that the Egyptian government troubles itself very little to advance civilization or really benefit in any way this part of Africa, and the slave trade naturally prospers in the hands of government employés who derive much profit from what may be truly called the "black mail" they receive for every slave exported to Arabia. I shall have occasion to speak of the slave trade later,* so I will only mention here an anecdote that was told me by the French vice-consul of Massowah, which shews in a rather amusing manner how well the resources of the place for furnishing slaves are known to the authorities at Cairo.

Some time before our arrival at Massowah, an armed sloop one morning anchored in the harbour, and displayed the vice-regal flag of Egypt, as a signal that she had on board a great dignitary of the State, with a firman from the Khedive. Of course all Massowah was in a state of excitement, and the governor hastened to his divan, trembling in his slippers, for he well knew what short notice an Eastern Potentate gives to a servant who has fallen into disgrace, and a horrible conviction forced itself on his mind, that the great personage who had arrived in such state, must be a new governor come to supersede him. Although the days have passed when a Pacha knew that each firman might contain an order to get himself strangled forthwith, after which it would only remain for him to kiss rever

* See Appendix, note A.

ently the seal of his princely master, and execute his behest, a royal firman is still looked upon with great respect in the East (where to hear is proverbially to obey), and the governor of Massowah prepared to receive his guest with all due ceremony. This distinguished person at last arrived, attended by a numerous retinue. He was a tall, stout Nubian, of ebony blackness, and low indeed were the salaams that greeted him, for he proved a far greater man than a new governor or even a military Pacha. In fact he was chief eunuch of the household to the Khedive's mother, and had come to require that Massowah should furnish some hundred or so of slaves and eunuchs for the royal marriage ceremonies at Cairo, which I have before alluded to. While this slave stayed, his word was law and his slightest wish humbly obeyed; and, when he left, he was accompanied to the shore with as much ceremony and honour as if he had been a great general, or distinguished minister. Thus, in the anomalous state of Eastern society, the governor of a province may yet find himself the servant of a slave.

From what I can learn, the people of "the harbour of the shepherds" appear formerly to have had rather the character of wolves in sheep's clothing. Bruce says that it was their habit to kill the unwary traveller who landed there in order to divide his property, and speaking of the town he calls it "that slaughter-house of strangers." No doubt the people of Massowah are better now, but even in the present day I fear a modern Diogenes might have to continue his search among

them a long time before he would find the honest man
he wanted.

The nearest fresh water springs to Massowah, and even they are brackish, are at Arkiko, three miles distant on the mainland, for the barren coral reef on which the town is built is without a trace of moisture or vegetation anywhere; but I believe means have lately been taken to bring a supply of fresh water to it.

The inhabitants of the mainland are a race of Arabs, called Shohos, who in general dress and appearance somewhat resemble the Hadarbas, before described, but they are migratory in their habits, and live by tending herds of cattle, which they drive from place to place as the pasture suits them; these herds often belong to Abyssinians, who entrust them to the Shohos in order that they may feed in the rich valleys of the lowlands during the dry season, and when the tropical rains commence they are driven back to the table lands of Abyssinia. Though the Shohos are a wild and uncivilized race, I believe they rarely fail to return safely to their owners the herds that have been intrusted to them; they live in little round huts made of branches, and their arms are a knife, spear, and a round buffalo-hide shield. Their chief bears the title of Naib, but he has now little power, for the Egyptian government has practically taken possession of all the mainland lying between Massowah and Subaguma, of which more wil be said hereafter.

In Massowah there live great numbers of Banyans,