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Updated: May 20, 2025
The Tibboos carry on a traffic between Mourzouk and Bournou, and subsist chiefly on camel's milk. They are of a gay disposition, and delight in dancing and singing. Though black, they have not the negro features; and Denham says that the females have some pretensions to beauty. They live in constant dread of the Tuaricks, who often make hostile ravages upon them.
Major Denham rode nearly the whole of this day with Min Ali Tahar, the Gundowy Tibbo sheik, who was accompanying them to Bornou; he had some little difference with the sheik, of whom he was perfectly independent, and Boo Khaloom, ever politic, undertook to make up the misunderstanding; thereby not only showing his influence, but securing in a manner the future friendship of Tahar, whose district was always considered the most dangerous part of the Tibboo country, on the road to Mourzouk.
The letter was then handed to his fighi, or secretary, and they found that they were entrusted to the protection of the sultan of Fezzan, who was to charge himself with their safety, and to ensure their being treated with respect and attention by all his subjects. That they were to reside at Sebha or Mourzouk, or wherever they chose in the kingdom of Fezzan, and to await his return from Tripoli.
The doctor would have preferred a horse, but it would have been necessary to carry barley and water for it, as it cannot live like the camel without drinking when crossing the desert. The expense, too, would have been very great. Their course was nearly due south, directed in the first place towards the town of Mourzouk, the capital of Fezzan.
Dates, as in all this species of territory, form the chief article of land produce, but Fezzan derives its chief importance from being the centre of that immense traffic, which gives activity and wealth to interior Africa. Mourzouk, in the dry season, forms a rendezvous for the caravans proceeding from Egypt, Morocco and Tripoli, to the great countries watered by the western river.
To the great surprise of Major Denham, striking his breast, he exclaimed, "I am Hateeta, Are you a countryman of Said? I have often longed to hear of him." Major Denham found that Hateeta had been but once in Mourzouk, since the departure of Captain Lyon, and was to remain only a few days. On the following morning, he came to the house, and the sword was presented to him.
The remaining half of their journey to Mourzouk was pretty nearly the same kind of surface as they had passed before, but in some places worse. Sometimes two, and once three days, they were without finding a supply of water, which was generally muddy, bitter, or brackish.
On the 9th of February, he finally left Mourzouk; and on the 25th March, exactly one year from the day on which the party left Tripoli, the Captain and Belford, his surviving companion, re-entered that capital.
In Mourzouk the men drink a great quantity of lackbi, or a drink called busa, which is prepared from the dates, and is very intoxicating. The Arabs practise hospitality generally; but among the Fezzaners that virtue does not exist, they are, however, very attentive and obsequious to those in whose power they are, or who can repay them tenfold for their pretended disinterestedness.
In pursuance of this determination to represent to the bashaw of Tripoli, how necessary it was that something more than promises should be given them for their sterling money, on Monday, the 20th May, Major Denham left Mourzouk, with only his own negro servant, three camels, and two Arabs, and after a most dreary journey of twenty days, over the same uninteresting country which he had already traversed, the more dreary for want of his former companions, he arrived at Tripoli on the 12th June, where he was received by the consul, with his usual hospitality and kindness, and he assigned him apartments in the consulate.
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