Queenslander (Brisbane, Qld. : 1866 - 1939), Saturday 8 July 1899, page 71


Sport and Travel.

THE WESTERN SAHARA.

At the Imperial Institute recently an en-<*. tertaining lecture on Cape Juby and the Western Sahara was delivered by Dr. F. S. Zaytoun, who has acquired some knowledge

of NorflKWOTt Africa from practical experience, having spent fir* yean at Cape Juby as interpreter *tad medical officer of tfatf North-west Sahara Ooirpany. After referring to the work of the early explorer*, Dr. Zaytoun pointed out than France wished to unite Algeria with Sene-BunUa by a Trans-Sateran Sail way. Tbi< enterprise wouM, however, be attended by great difficulties, both, from (he phyricai nature of the oountry and from the hostility of the native*. The Western Sahara stretched from the Ahaggar Mountains and Adrar on the east to the Atlantic, and from the Atlas MoanwiM down to The River Senegal. ft was drrided into several districts, each governed by an independent

chief. ; Ttte population wit estimated at over two mtfflon*; negro* were seldom m«t w*&, the majority of the natives being Berbers. Cape Jutoy. was in Che sasae latitude a* the Canary Islands, and from this point the boast trended nof.h-westwftra up to the Wad Draa, while to Oape Bolador It followed a nearly, southerly direction. Th> il&oral betw««h tjhe Wad Draa, Mm boundary of Morocco,, and Oape Bojador, was called Tekna. ' Tihe Wad Draa, the largest river of Sorth-west Africa, flowed southward int<r the- Sahara, and then, binding to the w«at. entered the Atlantic ataMt WO miles aorth of Oape Ju»y. Its vatiey wai very fattilf. and the Inhabitant* cultivated tarf* qnaatfiles of barley and otter cofeefe, dates, Tevetttbles and. fruits. • fYom the Wad Draa southwards there was no natural feature of any Interest until the Boca Grande was reached. About eighty miles farther was Porto Cansado, formerly occupied by the Spaniards. About fifty miles south of Cape Juby was the Baklet el Hamra.*or Hed Channel. This ran In a bed of Mft or-7«ft. wide through a valley Uro or three miles In breadth, where the tribes found good pasturag*. The Rio del Oro was stfatateU above 809 miles south of Cap* Jnby; tk« intervening coast being alternately rooty and sandy. - '"•'.': TJhe vegetation consisted of elumna of large, compact bushes, cacti,' and other thorny, succulent plants, which served as forage for camels. Anafls, the bark of whlob was used for tanning ; henna, the shrub ~ which yielded the dye used by the native women to colour their foreheads, noses, and finger nails ; and orchllla, a parasitic/planl, which alsd furnished a beautiful dye, flows lshed. The rainfall In the Sahara was very small and Irregularly dlvtributed. Prom measurements at Cape Jaby In ISM, tin lecturer found It amounted to only Sin. for the whole year. The water supply was, however, supplemented by the wads or rivers flowing down from the mountains, which farrowed the surface In many directions. The depth at whloh subsoil water was found varied according to the nature of the soil ;

PRAYBRB FOR RAIN AR« ANBWBRBD ' • SOHVTIMfIS.

OFF COLOUR.

lm the neighbourhood of Cape Juby ft la y from Bft. to 10ft. below the surface. 1m» water, though brackish, was partaken of freely by the natives, the flocks of sheep, and the camels. All around Ga^e Juby were' sebekh, or deprONtom contalntag crystallised salt. .To the south-east, flfteep milep from Cape. Ju>y, was one called Bebka el Hamm, about 400 yarrtS long by J9)O broad. The salt, pans of

Taudeni and Bl Juf were very extensive, anrt had been worked for the last 600 years. The salt wm deported in fire different layers, of which the uppermost was almost worthless, the fourth being the most valuable. The salt was quarried out In slabs, .some «s much as 3ft. long, ISin. broad, and Sin. thick, weighing about 661b. each, which sold In Timbuktu at the rate of £1. In Bl Juf there was a whole series of salt

paos, one of which was about thirty mile 3 long and twelve broad, 20,000 camel-loads being extracted from It annually. Mr. Donall Mackenzie, who examined the nortb-west littoral in 1876, proposed to admit the water of the Atlantio into the interior, by making a navigable channel through the Sakiet el Fan.-la, thus opening up the region to commerce, civilisation, and Christianity, but his scheme lacked support at present

The domestic animals of the Western Sahara Included camels, sheep, goats, horses, donkeys, and cattle ; and, as game, gaselles, antelopes, wolves, hyenas, ostriches, foxes, jackals, wild boars, and leopards. Dromedart** were indispensable to the native*, carrying them from place to place, and supplying them with meat and milk. Many of the natives lived upon camels' milk for nine months of the year, whilst Me flesh was con-

sldered a luxury. The ostrich was also .peculiarly adapted for the desert ; H fed on the young growths of certain shrubs, and could live a long thne without drinking. The gazelle was valued for its flesh, Its skin .being tanned and manufactured into various articles. Horn* of the tribes were warriors or Has••ori, otbera being oaaoaful, and others 'Zeway* or neutral; the peaceful tribes paid

blackmail to the HtMtni. Commerce wm the pursuit of all, the peaceful tribes also engaging In agriculture. The people lived very simply, their food consisting chiefly of tmrlvy, dates, and milk, whilst their dress was a piece of blue doth. The men averaged 6ft. lOin. in heitfbt, and aJtbough somewhat slender, tfeey had well-developed muscles. Their eooplexlon was darfcbrowq, and their hair strong, Mack, and

curly. They were strong and active, and possessed astonishing powers of endurance and abstinence, being able to travel two days without waiter. Their eight ww excellent, their faculty of observation being sharpened by living in a- country where landmarks were scarce. The wwrrlora, both young and oM,. wore their hair long, but young boys had their head staved, except t Wd| lock on the crown, said to be

left tor Mohammed to pull them up to heaven by ! The Ante and Btrtwn were hoapMeJMe, and paid great respect to the aged, but, on the other hand, they were treacherous, revengeful, and cruel, and their word was not to be relied upon. A regular trade in n\%rm wu carried on among the tribes of tbe Sfthara, and with Morocco. Brery man who had* the means kept «ac or more tlaTea, mum owning as .many aa ftfty

THB CROWD ON THE CHfcANt) STAND AND LAWN.

QRAILTON KKACINQ UHB QUBBNBLAN DBRB' FIRST GOAL.

A THROW-IN. THE INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALL MATCH, QUEENSLAND V. ENGLAND. (Thou* by Toa«.

dr iftti&Wbat* *xm. ***** were kld ntpped'ln the Soudan, tad, wKh other Sou danese products—ivory, gold dust, and gum •rrwer*' obtained I*y tfc* Arab dealers' in ex change tor. oloth, sosjar, tea, beads, and salt. The prioe of slaves ranged from a camel's load of salt to a few pieces of blue cloth. At the markeKs they fetch from tight? to a hundred dollar* per head, ac cording to their age and hx, young female slaves commanding a higher price than the male*. ■ Four routes crocs the Sahara from the north of TlmbuHtu, starting from Tripoli, Tunis, Algiers, and Morocco. The report o" HJH. Consul at Mogador was quoted to the effeot that the " akabar," or caravan, from MWrooco, was the largest that crone* the desert to Timbuktu. It started once a year, ' about the month of October, from Tinduf, on the eonflnes of the desert, and amounted to over 10,000 camels. Only SO per cent left that station laden with good*; the other* proceeded to Taodenl, in the centre of the desert, w&ere they were laden with salt tor the Soudan. There were, besides, many small akaibars which crossed the desert during the year, averaging 100 camels eaoh. The merchandise carried by these caravan* consisted of the following good* :—>Blue doth, American cloth, long cloth, sugar, tea, glass beads, amber beads, shells, and silk, from Fes and Morocco; and gold, ostrich, feathers, Bonegsl gum, gum-arabic, frank-

incense, blankets, and; slaves from tfce Soudan. The average value of the mer chandise oarrted by each camel was £50. The approximate value, therefore, of the goods conveyed by the great akabar was £100,000 ; with the addition of £30,000, the value of the small caravans, the total veJue of the merchandise sent yearly from Moroc co to Timbuktu w«a £130.000. Upcn this sum a profit of 76 per cent was made by the traders, besides the gains on the salt car ried from TOaudeai to Timbuktu. At Tim buktu the great caravan was broken up, and the traders returned in small parties to their respective homes by different routes. The journey from Wad Nun to Timbuktu occupied twenty "eight days . with drome daries, and about sixty days with ordinary camels. The trade of Cape Juby consisted chiefly of the barter of blue and white cotton cloth, Ac, for the wool yielded by the large flocks of sheep which pastured in the vicinity.

The latest development of the art of ad vertisement has appeared in Sweden. The advertisers have actually captured the backs of the Swedish national bank note. A temple of serpents In Werda, Dahomey, Is an object of reHglou* interest* to the natives. It contain* over 1006 serpents, some of them of immense sii* The priests care for them, and the superstitious wor shippers bring offerlngevof birds and frogs, which are greedily devoured by the snakes.

THE BATTLE-STAINED QUEENSLAND TEAM, AS PHOTOGRAPHED IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE MATCH (Photo by Tosca) Front Row : F. Kant, S. Boland, W. Tanner, ■. Carrie, A. Oolton. . '•/■■-■. Centre Row : A. Orslton, C. 8. On ham, R. ATOowftn OOapbaln), T. Oolton. # > /■■-*. . Baok Row :W. BvAnt, P. Carew, T. Ward, W. H. Austin, A. Corfa, L. Dlzoa. . <

THB OSHBV JUBTSOB INTBSUDBTB HMBREJP IN DBS (JAMS.