The Es-Sfaxee, heading our servants, was determined to fire away a little gunpowder this evening though much against my inclination. After they had been firing near the tents, En-Noor sent for them to fire at the doors of his house. The old Sheikh is now waxing mighty civil, and swears that we are his _walad_ (children). We shall see what we shall see. Yusuf even thinks he can be persuaded to sign the treaty. All the Kailouees are very fond of powder, and also very much alarmed at it. They say they could themselves make plenty of powder if saltpetre were found them.
_21st._--It appears that some of the districts of Damerghou are included within the circle of Aheer, and that the Kailouees exercise authority there. En-Noor has a house there.
Overweg's three hypotheses of danger south of Bornou are:--
1. To be stripped of everything by robbers, and left naked in the wilderness.
3. To be forced to traverse a desert where there is no subsistence for man or beast. Indeed, after the experience we have had up this road, although a Tuarick road (and Tuaricks are not supposed to have a peculiar antipathy to Christians), it will be next to suicide to proceed far south without adequate guides and protection.
The two predominant passions of men in all these Tuarick countries, especially Aheer, are for dress and women. A few only are tainted by fanaticism, and fewer still are misers; because, probably they have nothing to save. Of the character of the women I cannot speak, for want of experience; the few we have met with have begged mostly for trinkets, and looking-glasses, but we have seen little of the love of intrigue.
About Aheer, the Bornou and Soudan routes appear not to be far apart. The Tibboos make Kisbee to be only eight days from Aghadez. The Kailouees also state that Bilma (or _Boulouma_, in their pronunciation) is only seven or eight days of good travelling from Tintalous; but the salt-caravans always employ fourteen days, arriving at Bilma on the fifteenth.
Yesterday afternoon a portion of a large Soudan caravan arrived. A number of bullocks were amongst its beasts of burden; one of these had immense branching horns, and, according to the report of Saïd's wife, was of the same species as those found in her country, Kanemboo, near Bornou. These bullocks seemed to be in every respect trained like horses, and some of them carry a burden of four cantars.