Travels in the footsteps of Bruce in Algeria and Tunis

As usual with such tombs, it goes by the name of Es-Souma, the minaret. About a mile further on are the remains of a Roman post, supposed to be the ancient Tymphes. It is called by the Arabs Kasr el-Kasir, and a fragment of an inscription was found here bearing the legend

Shortly after passing this the road enters very beautiful mountain scenery; the hills are clothed with oak and Aleppo pine, with here and there a wild almond tree. At the foot of the eastern slope is a spring, Ain el-Amba, which has been led into a drinking-fountain, and from this place, indeed from the crest of the hill above it, there is a good trace of a road commenced by the French but not finished, as far as Tebessa.

The distance from Ain Khenchla to Tebessa is 57 miles, which we did in three days. It is a most unsatisfactory journey to make, and I should recommend anyone following in our footsteps to go by diligence viâ Ain Beida in preference.

CHAPTER XIII.

1. An Indian-ink perspective view of the Temple of Jupiter, roughly but boldly executed (Plate VIII.)

2. One double sheet containing a pencil sketch of the triumphal arch of Caracalla, with details and measurements (Plate IX.)

3. An Indian-ink perspective view of one face only of the same building.

Theveste must have been a very important town of Numidia, but it is only mentioned by later writers, and not alluded to by Strabo, Pliny or Sallust. It was probably founded immediately after the Jewish War, A.D. 71. And M. Léon Renier thinks that an inscription found in the forum, and containing the letters[88]

must have been in honour of Vespasian, and his son Titus. If it did exist at this period, it was probably a purely military post.

It very speedily rose into importance on account of its situation at the junction of the roads to Carthage, Cirta, Hippone, Lambessa and Tacape (mod. Gabes). It was probably also an entrepôt for the commerce of Central Africa, as well as for the produce of the country.

Christianity was introduced into Carthage about A.D. 150, and Theveste was probably one of the first places to follow the example of the African metropolis. Four bishops are recorded as having ruled over the church here, of whom the first assisted at the Council of Carthage, presided over by St. Cyprian. Their names are-

St. Maximilian and St. Crispin suffered martyrdom at Theveste, the former under the pro-consulate of Dion, the latter under Diocletian. St. Optatus records that a Donatist council assembled here in A.D. 350.[89]

The commencement of the second century was its period of greatest splendour, and it is from this time that we must date the construction of its finest monuments. It must have fallen into ruin during the Vandal occupation, and disappeared from history until restored by the Byzantine armies. Solomon was the second founder of Theveste, which he fortified, as he did many other cities in various parts of Africa. He enclosed it within ramparts and towers, the trace of which exists to the present day, while the citadel is as imposing as when built thirteen centuries ago. Here it was that Solomon himself was slain, after having for four years bravely withstood the constant insurrections which followed the departure of Belisarius from Africa.

A Byzantine inscription, built into one of the openings of the triumphal arch, has thus been completed by M. Renier:—

This is the only inscription found in Africa making any direct allusion to the expulsion of the Vandals. Then came the Arab invasion, which destroyed the last trace of Greek supremacy, and converted Mauritania and Numidia to the religion of El-Islam. During the Mohammedan domination Tebessa partook of the vicissitudes of the dynasties, which at various times held the district, and finally submitted to a French column under General Randon in 1842, although it was not until 1851 that it was permanently occupied.

Tebessa is built in one of the most advantageous positions which it is possible to conceive, about eleven miles from the Tunisian frontier. It is situated to the north of the mountains of Bou Rouman, which enclose the basin of the Oued Chabrou, an affluent of the Oued Meskiana. It has an abundant water supply and is surrounded by most beautiful gardens. In front is an immense plain watered by numerous streams flowing into the Oued Chabrou, which winds along the bottom of the valley.

The modern town is contained within the walls of the Byzantine citadel, which however occupies but a small portion of the ancient city. Its high walls flanked with towers are still in a tolerably good state of preservation, and are evidently built of still older materials.[91]

The French have repaired the walls of Solomon’s citadel, now the outer line of fortification, and have added a modern Kasba containing barracks and other subsidiary military buildings, which latter serves as the present citadel.

It is almost square in form, the perimeter being about 1,170 yards in extent; the walls are built of large cut stones, and it is strengthened by fourteen square towers, four of which are at the angles, and the rest irregularly distributed between them. The height of the walls varies from sixteen to thirty-three feet, that of the towers from thirty to forty, and the thickness of the masonry from six to eight feet. It has three gates, the Bab el-Kedim, or old gate, formed by the arch of Caracalla; the Bab el-Djedid, or new gate, sometimes called that of Solomon; and the Bab el-Kasba, or gate of the citadel, which forms the entrance to the new quarter occupied by the troops.

The Temple of Jupiter (Plate VIII.), situated within the present enceinte, is of the Corinthian order, forty-five feet nine inches long, including the pronaos, by twenty-six feet three inches broad. The material of the main building is compact limestone. Each side is strengthened by four pilasters, and in front is the portico supported by six monolithic columns of marble, four of which are in front. It is raised on a basement or podium twelve feet high, in which are three vaults now filled up, and access to the temple is attained by a handsome flight of cut stone steps.

The entablature is not of a regular form, the architrave and frieze forming one height; over the columns and pilasters are panels ornamented by bucranes or ox skulls. The intermediate spaces are occupied by panels highly sculptured. This is immediately crowned by the cornice, above which is a highly ornamented attic, now about equal in height to the entablature. No doubt, it had a cornice, which has disappeared. In the panels between the bucranes are eagles holding thunderbolts, on either side of which are serpents and branches with trilobate leaves. On the attic, the vertical panels over the columns and pilasters have trophies of armour, and the oblong ones alternately garlands and double horns of plenty.

The attic on the front has no sculpture, and this was doubtless intended to receive marble slabs with a dedicatory inscription. The soffits between the columns are everywhere richly decorated, and between the two central columns is the head of Jupiter Tonans. It was originally surrounded by an enclosure wall, the gate of which now actually serves as the front door of the mosque opposite.

This building has been put to many uses since the French occupation; at first it was a soap manufactory; then the Bureau du Génie; subsequently a prison, and a canteen: and finally it was converted into the parish church, a dome being added, a bell perched on the top, and the interior supplied with ecclesiastical fittings in the worst style of the génie militaire. Happily the dome fell in, and the building is now unused for any purpose; it is greatly to be desired that the hideous modern additions may be removed, and the temple restored to its original beauty.

The triumphal arch of Caracalla is a really magnificent monument of the description called quadrifrons, each face representing an ordinary single arch of triumph. The only other known specimens of the kind are the arch of Janus Quadrifrons, at Rome, much inferior to this both in size and beauty, and the great arch at Tripoli, which forms the subject of the finest of Bruce’s illustrations. There is also an Imperial medal in existence containing a similar arch, dedicated to Domitian. This monument is built of large blocks of cut stone. A pair of Corinthian monolithic disengaged columns flank each arch, behind which are pilasters. Each column stands upon its own pedestal, and not, as is usually the case in African monuments, upon one common to each pair of columns.

The soffits supported by these, and also the central ceiling, were richly decorated. The entablature is composed of a highly ornate architrave, with rounded leaves at the angles, above which is a cornice. There is also a lofty frieze, as though for the reception of an inscription, and this also is surmounted by a cornice.

Above the north façade is a small building, intended as a niche to contain a bust or statue; the semicircular base is still in place. It is fronted by two isolated columns, with corresponding pilasters on the right and left of the niche. The whole is covered with a flat roof, with a plain architrave and cornice on the outside. Another was probably built on the south side; indeed, but for the inscription on the inside, one would be tempted to believe that there must have been one above each façade. The head of a bust, evidently belonging to this niche, and supposed to be that of Septimius Severus, was found in the neighbourhood, and is now preserved in the Engineers’ office at Constantine.

From the inscriptions on the interior we learn the history of the building. There was a rich family of Tebessa represented by three brothers, Cornelius Fortunatus, Cornelius Quintus, and Cornelius Egrilianus. The last of these commanded the 14th legion, Gemina, and died leaving all his property to his two brothers on certain conditions.

The first was that they should erect a triumphal arch surmounted by two tetrastyles, enclosing statues of the two Augusti. In the forum also were to be placed statues of the divine Severus and of the goddess Minerva. 250,000 sesterces were to be expended on these works. A further sum of 250,000 sesterces was to be devoted to affording gratuitous baths to the inhabitants in the public thermæ; and lastly 170 lbs. of silver and 14 lbs. of gold were to be deposited in the Capitol for a purpose which is not clear from the inscription. The following is a restoration of this interesting record proposed by M. Léon Renier:—

On the opposite side, namely the right hand on leaving the town, is a tabular statement, very much defaced, but of which the heading is quite distinct:

On each façade, above the arch, was a tablet containing a dedicatory inscription. The western one was in honour of Julia Domna, wife of the Emperor Septimius Severus, and mother of the two Emperors Caracalla and Geta.

This inscription is as follows:—

The key of the arch below is decorated with an eagle holding thunderbolts, supporting a medallion out of which rises a female bust, wearing a high mural crown, typical, perhaps, of Julia Domna herself or of Rome.

Septimius Severus died in A.D. 211, and the two Augusti mentioned in the testament were evidently Caracalla and Geta. Caracalla murdered his brother in 212, consequently the date of the testament is fixed between those two years, though the execution of the work may have been a little later. The east façade bears a dedication to Septimius Severus himself. It has a medallion similar to the W. front, of a warrior in armour, resting on a head of the Medusa, representing probably Septimius Severus himself, and the terror which his countenance was supposed to inspire. It runs as follows:—

The southern inscription is illegible; it is believed to have been in honour of Caracalla; and the northern one is wanting and, if ever executed at all, was probably in honour of Geta to complete the series. The two other medallions are obliterated.

The partial destruction of this arch may date from the fifth century, when the city was deserted by its inhabitants and sacked by the Numidians; but its preservation at all was undoubtedly due to Solomon having so traced the walls of the citadel as to adopt it as the principal entrance gate.

One of the most interesting ruins in Algeria is that of the great basilica of Theveste; this was so much buried in its own débris during Bruce’s visit, that he was unaware of its existence, and alludes to it as the area of a temple. It is situated about 600 yards N.E. of the modern town, and consists of a vast edifice, 213 feet long by 72 broad, enclosed within a wall 588 feet long by 127 broad, strengthened at intervals by square towers, only two of which remain.

The principal entrance to the enclosure is to the S.W. The arch is quite entire, but the numerous subsidiary buildings in the court are razed to the ground, except where they seem to form actually part of the main structure.

The masonry throughout is of immense blocks of stone, carefully cut and adjusted almost without the use of mortar; nevertheless it bears unmistakable evidence of having been constructed at various epochs. The original building, however, was evidently the Roman basilica, pretty exactly as Vitruvius describes it with a nave and two aisles, the further end being furnished with a semicircular apse.

The reader need hardly be reminded that the ancient Basilica was a court of justice; the prætor or principal judge was seated in the apse, with assessors on either side. A railing separated this from the nave, and according to Vitruvius, the lateral aisles were surmounted by galleries looking into the nave. This peculiar form was so perfectly adapted for Christian worship that it was at once adopted by the Western Church. The bishop took the place of the præetor in cathedrâ, and his subordinates in the hierarchy those of the assessors. The altar, like the pedestal and statue of the god among the ancients, was situated before him, separating him from the congregation collected in the nave and aisles; the gallery above the latter became the clerestory, and the open court in front the narthex, in which the unbaptised remained during the performance of religious ceremonies.

The access to this building is by a flight of thirteen steps of unequal width, the greater number of which are destroyed, leading into the peristyle by three doors, a large one in the middle and a smaller one on each side. This court must have been most imposing. It was surrounded by an arcade, each side supported by four columns, between which were pedestals, probably destined for statues; the central portion was open to the sky, and in it was an elevated basin or fountain, the whole resembling very much in design the court of a Moorish house of the present day.

From the right or east wall of this were doors leading into two small chambers, one of which was the baptistery, the font being still tolerably perfect in the centre of the floor. The other chamber is of irregular shape, having been added to at a subsequent period.

Beyond this comes the main body of the building, entered by three doors. It is separated by ranges of double columns into nave and two aisles. These columns are of grey granite, white marble, and blue limestone; they are broken for the most part into numerous fragments; the shafts of some are entire, as are most of the capitals, and the bases of all remain in their original position. These show that there was a double range; a large shaft with a square base, and a smaller one with a round base touching it, towards the aisles; the one no doubt supported the roof of the nave, the other that over the aisles.

It is easy to recognise the period of the Pagan Emperors; a later epoch, with a certain amount of Christian art, and ultimately a period of absolute decadence, probably the last time that Christians worked in this country. The first is marked by Corinthian columns, the capitals of which are in the most correct form, and the shafts of polished marble and granite, and of a beauty which would only have been marred by fluting. The second is represented by fragments of fluted and spiral columns, the capitals of which were richly decorated with foliage; and lastly, there are rough productions in stone, out of all keeping with the rest of the building, the capitals of which bear grotesque representations of fishes, perhaps used as the symbol of Christ.

At the extreme north end is an apse, raised above the level of the nave, with three steps on which to mount to it. On either side is a square chamber, corresponding to the termination of the aisles. From the first to the fourth pillars on each side, and again across from the fourth on one side to the fourth on the other, are grooves to receive a railing, showing that this part was divided off with the apse to form, perhaps, at first the prætor’s court, and subsequently the sacrarium; in the centre of this space is an oblong vault, or cavity. The whole of the floor is covered with tesselated pavements of very elegant designs and admirable execution. These are almost perfect in condition, and have been judiciously covered over with a layer of earth to protect them from injury.

Descending from the east side aisle by a flight of about thirteen steps is a chapel of the form of a trefoil inscribed within a square.

From the north and south apses are communications with small lateral chambers right and left, and from the south one there is access through a small ante-room to a sepulchral chamber beyond; the front of each apse was arched, the arches supported on each side by columns of green marble.

In the centre of the square contained between them was what appears to be the foundation of an altar; the walls were covered, for a part at least of their height, with a mosaic of the richest marbles, porphyry, and serpentine, so disposed as to form either pictorial designs or geometric patterns, while the ceiling was a mosaic of glass, quantities of tesseræ, both coloured and gilt, having been found amongst the débris.

This building was probably an addition, subsequent to the erection of the main body of the basilica. It is also certain that it must have replaced a still older structure, as traces of tesselated pavement were found four feet below the actual floor.

A large sarcophagus of marble, with Christian figures rudely sculptured, was found at the bottom of the stairs.

In the sepulchral chamber above mentioned was found a tesselated pavement, containing four inscriptions recording the interment of individuals beneath them. One is that of Palladius, Bishop of Idicra, near Cirta (Constantine), who died here on his return from the Council of Carthage, under Huneric, in A.D. 484. This inscription was headed by a cross, having in the lower right hand angle the letter Omega. It is curious to observe that the corresponding one on the left hand does not contain the Alpha, as is usually the case. It has been said that this was owing to the fact of the bishop having died out of his own diocese. The tomb was opened, thus destroying the inscription, but the bishop’s skeleton was found perfectly preserved after fourteen centuries. It rested on a bed of laurel leaves, and its brown hair was undecayed. These venerable remains are preserved in the church of Tebessa, or rather in the curé’s house, which serves as such.

Another tomb was opened, that of Marcella, and in it were found perfectly preserved bones, and light hair. The inscription was also necessarily destroyed, but the others (three in number) were allowed to remain intact.

There were various buildings, probably cells or shops, outside and against the main structure, and the whole was surrounded by a strong wall, flanked at intervals with towers, like a vast fortified convent. This it doubtless was during the later years of its existence, but unfortunately its history is entirely unknown, and its original destination, or at least the destination of the older portion of it, must remain a matter of conjecture.

From a careful study of the architecture of this building however, the grand simplicity of its design and the richness of its materials, it is difficult to believe that the earlier portions of it could have been built after the introduction of Christianity into Theveste, when art was already in its decadence. The presumption is strong, that it could not have been commenced later than the end of the first, or beginning of the second century; this would make it older than almost any of the Roman monuments of Algeria, as it certainly was superior to most of them in elegance and simplicity, though less florid in decoration.

There are many other Roman ruins of interest in the circle of Tebessa, and on Djebel Mestiri, west of the town, and extending as far as Djebel Youkous, are a number of megalithic tombs of a circular form. They are about 100 in number, situated in a single line, the right of which rests on the ruins of a Byzantine tower. The largest is about eleven feet three inches high, and from twelve to thirty feet in diameter. They differ from those of Foum Kosentina by being built in successive and gradually decreasing courses, without any single covering stone; they rather resemble the Medrassen and the tombs in its vicinity.

We left Tebessa for Constantine on May 12, by diligence, following pretty much the same route as that taken by Bruce—whose notes are as follows:—

The Ain Shabrou or Chabrou mentioned here is a large spring on the left of the present road, about six and a quarter miles from Tebessa, near which are the ruins of the Roman city Ad Mercuriam. A little to the west of it is Ain Youkous, more correctly Okes, وكيس or Bou Okes, from the Latin word Aquæ. This stream rises in a beautiful cave in the mountains; it is of great depth, and has often served as an impregnable retreat to the Arabs in time of war. The Welled Esa, or Oulad Aissa, is a collective name given to the tribes in the circle of Ain Beida, including the Haracta. In the time of the Turks these formed a great command called the Kaidat of the Aouassi, or descendants of Aissa. Ain Beida did not of course exist in Bruce’s time; it is entirely a French town, the chief place of the Haractas.

This route is especially interesting, as showing that the frontiers of Algeria in Bruce’s time were actually west of Tebessa and of the Miskiana, both of which belonged to Tunis.

Ziganiah is the Roman Sigus, twenty-four miles from Constantine. This was an ancient and celebrated city, memorable as the residence during various epochs of several Numidian kings. The destruction of this place appears to have been very violent, and little remains save the foundations of a few buildings and a considerable necropolis, not only of Roman, but of the so-called pre-historic tombs, dolmens, cromlechs, and menhirs. At Bou-Merzoug also there is an immense number of these megalithic remains, which were first explored by Mr. Christy and M. Féraud in 1863.[95]

We returned to Constantine on May 13, and here my explorations in the footsteps of Bruce may be said to have ended for the season. All that remained to be done was to return to Algiers; but, instead of doing so by railway and steamer, or by diligence, I determined to adopt a more interesting and less known route, on which I will ask the reader to accompany me.

CHAPTER XIV.

After the disastrous insurrection of 1871,[96] of which El-Mokrani was the principal leader, the Bordj was destroyed, and the whole of his vast property confiscated to the State.

A village, to contain seventy homesteads, is in process of construction. Each concession contains 100 acres of excellent land, in addition to a village and garden lot.

The Bordj, built by the Bach-Agha, under the direction of French engineers, consisted of a bastioned enclosure within which was his residence. This will be repaired, and will constitute a place of refuge for the colonists in case of necessity, and will contain the church, school, and other communal buildings. A beautiful spring issues from some Roman remains below the fort, and forms almost the only water supply of the village.

We pitched our tents close to this spring, and early on May 19 resumed our journey. The road still continued in a north-westerly direction, over rich plains, and eventually amongst picturesque mountain scenery; the valleys are everywhere highly cultivated, and the hills furnish excellent pasturage for sheep. After a ride of two hours and three-quarters we reached Theniet el-Khamis, a small village of stone huts, formerly the property of Mokrani, situated in a pass forming the limit between the Medjana and Kabylia. Immediately afterwards the scenery becomes more wild; Kabyle villages are seen crowning the crests of the hills; the land is more carefully cultivated, and every thread of water carefully employed for irrigational purposes. After a ride of four hours and a half we reached the fort or blockhouse of Boni.

Here we found M. Marchal, the interpreter of Akbou, awaiting us. He had been sent on by M. de Beaumont, the Commandant Supérieur, to arrange for our journey through his command, and we had every reason to congratulate ourselves on the good fortune which procured for us so pleasant and intelligent a companion.

The Bordj of Boni contains a suite of rooms and stabling, for the accommodation of such public functionaries as may have occasion to visit the district. It was built after the last insurrection, and forms a most convenient halting-place for the traveller, who, though he cannot claim admittance, is sure to be hospitably received. There is an excellent spring below the mound, and the views of the Djurdjura range from the summit are very grand.

The Sheikh of Boni had also come to conduct us to Geläa, where he resides. He is quite of the Bou-Dhiaf type—a genial and pleasant host, who feasted us royally.

From this to Geläa is a ride of not more than an hour and a half, through what is, perhaps, the most magnificent mountain scenery in Algeria. The road winds up and down steep hills in a most tortuous manner, sometimes passing over the intervening ridges, and at others encircling their sides. On the right hand is a deep abyss, beyond which is a mass of hills and valleys, clothed to their summits with verdure, resembling a tempestuous sea suddenly arrested and turned into rock. On the left the view is more extensive; the foreground is as wild, while range after range of mountains succeed each other in ever-changing variety of form and colour, till the extreme distance is shut in by the majestic snow-capped ridge of Djurdjura. No other peak can ever depose this from its place as the monarch of Algerian mountains. Chellia and Mahmel, in the Aurès, may be higher, but they rise from more elevated ground, and thus lose much of their grandeur, while for beauty of outline and richness of tints the Djurdjura range, seen from the south, with the Oued es-Sahel at its foot, is superior to them both.

Kaläa—or Geläa, as it is here pronounced, meaning a fortress in Arabic—is one of the most picturesquely situated villages in Kabylia. It is built on the extreme end of a mountain, more than 3,000 feet above the sea, surrounded on three sides by precipitous ravines, through one of which flows a tributary of the Oued Sellam. The cliffs descend in a succession of perpendicular scarps, separated from each other by narrow terraces, so as to be quite inaccessible. The fourth side, where the hill rises behind the village, can only be reached by a narrow winding path, which a few resolute men might defend against an army.

In former times this was a city of refuge for such as wished to escape the justice or vengeance of the Turks, who never succeeded in reducing its inhabitants to their sway.

Its proximity to the Biban, or Portes de Fer, itself a strong position, enabled the Beni Abbas to command that pass, and consequently the route between Algiers and Constantine, and they were in a position to exact a tribute from the Turks as the price of keeping open this communication.

The village of Geläa is divided into two portions, each ruled over by a Sheikh independent of the other. The lower portion belongs to the Oulad Aissa, and the upper to the Oulad Hamadoosh. It is the principal place of the Beni Abbas, a once powerful confederation, extending north and south from beyond the Oued es-Sahel to Boni, and east and west from the river of Geläa to the Oued Maghir. The villages in this district are well built, of stone, roofed with tiles, and very often they have small enclosures, or gardens, attached, while the interiors are finished off with great neatness, and even some rude idea of decorative art.

The inhabitants of Geläa have little or no arable land, but they are famous for the manufacture of bernouses. They make a considerable quantity of olive oil, and are renowned merchants, purchasing the carpets and haiks of the south, and selling them at the markets of Constantine and other great towns. Between the two villages are a number of small springs, quite dry in summer, so that for several months in the year the water supply of each village has to be brought from the valley below.

In the upper village is an ancient mosque, with some good wood-carving over the door; in the cemetery attached is buried the celebrated Bach-Agha el-Mokrani. His body was brought here after the battle of Oued Souflat, where he was killed. It is much to be regretted that his tomb should be quite unmarked. The Commandant Supérieur of Aumale, Colonel Trumelet, has had the happy idea of marking the spot where he fell by a stone bearing this inscription:—‘Ici tomba, mortellement frappé par les balles du 4^ème de Zouaves, le 5 Mai 1871, le Bach-Agha de la Medjana, El-Hadj Mohammed ben el-Hadj Ahmed el-Mokrani, chef de l’insurrection.’

The connection of the Mokrani family with Geläa dates from the sixteenth century, when one of their ancestors, Ben Abd-er-Rahman, established a little principality here after the expulsion of the Spaniards from Bougie. The last of these princes was murdered by his subjects in A.D. 1600.

Mokrani owned several houses in Geläa, and his brother was at one time Kaid of the Beni Abbas.

There is a large guest-chamber in the upper village belonging to our friend who had entertained us at Boni, but we were only permitted to see it. We were conducted to the house of the other Sheikh—of the Oulad Aissa—and installed there as honoured guests. If the first Sheikh resembled our jovial host at Timegad, this one might be compared to the more refined and imperial-looking Kaid of the Oulad Abdi. He received us with the most perfect grace, and with a cordiality which made us instantly feel at home. The Kabyles are renowned for hospitality, but very few are celebrated for their cuisine. A traveller must have been difficult indeed to please had he not been satisfied with the excellent fare provided by our host. It is not the custom here for the women to appear before strangers, but the ladies of our party visited them in their apartments, and were surprised to find a little girl who had been taught by the Sisters at Bone, and who spoke French with perfect facility. The delight of the poor child at finding ladies to whom she could speak in French would have been ludicrous had it not been so touching. She would hardly allow them out of her sight; she insisted on sharing their bed-room, and kept them awake all night with her chattering, and, to crown all, she stained their hands and nails with henna—an operation which in their ignorance they permitted, and which had the startling effect of producing an indelible stain of a bright orange colour, which adorned them for several months after their return to civilised life.

M. Daly became quite enthusiastic about the decoration of the doors in our host’s house, which he copied with most minute accuracy. The designs were quaint but not inelegant, and the colours harmonious, being only red and black.

One of the most interesting sights of Geläa is the extraordinary method employed for storing grain—in enormous baskets of alpha grass, fourteen or fifteen feet high, and ten feet in diameter at the thickest parts, resembling gigantic bottles with the necks knocked off. These are raised about a foot off the ground, and four or five of them are placed side by side in a room. In these vessels, called Zaräa, a reserve supply of corn has been known to keep perfectly good for fifty years. The family of Mokrani were in the habit of keeping their corn in this way on account of the exceptionally good climate of the village, but the stories which have obtained currency of the immense treasures concealed by them here are pure inventions. In troublous times, before the French conquest, such may have been the case, but for many years before the insurrection the treasures of Mokrani had vanished into debts. Somewhat similar grain-baskets, but of a much smaller size, were observed by M. Pricot de Ste. Marie in the island of Djerba; and amongst the Ouerghemma, in the Regency of Tunis, they were in the form of pears, four-and-a-half feet high, and they preserved the grain perfectly, though exposed to the full inclemency of the weather.[97]

There is a direct route from this village to Akbou, but we preferred to make a détour in order to see Ighil Ali, the most considerable village in the Beni Abbas.

We started on the morning of May 21, and after passing through the village we descended a path so steep and difficult as hardly to be practicable for mules. On reaching the bottom of the hill, however, it improves, and soon the high road between Bordj bou Areredj and the Oued es-Sahel is reached. The scenery is still remarkably grand, but less green than before reaching Geläa. The ground is poor, schistose, and only adapted for the cultivation of fig and olive trees, which constitute the principal riches of the country. About halfway is the village of Zeina, the only one we actually passed, though we saw many crowning the heights around.

After about four hours’ riding we reached Ighil Ali; in fact, there are three villages placed so close together as to form but one—Ighil Ali, Tizairt, and Azrou.

The last crowns the hill to the west, while the two others at its foot are separated by an inclined plane, in which is situated the Medressa. It was one of the favourite ideas of Napoleon III. to educate the Arab and Kabyle races in the French language and ideas. Numerous educational establishments were organised with this view, at Algiers, Constantine, Fort National and elsewhere, nearly all of which collapsed with the Empire. Amongst others, a college was established here at which Kabyle youths were taught both Arabic and French. The buildings are still kept in repair, but unused; we occupied them during the day. We remained here instead of putting up at the less comfortable house of the Sheikh; dhifas however were sent in great profusion, and a very cordial reception given to us.

These villages are much better built and more picturesque than most others in Kabylia; many of them have two stories, some even three. The walls are decorated with arches and quaint holes for ventilation, and not a few have arched colonnades. The general appearance of the whole, sloping upwards in a pyramidal form, is not at all unlike many Italian villages. They used to be celebrated for the manufacture of arms, but as that is now a forbidden industry, they have extended their manufacture of bernouses, silver ornaments, etc.; and one of them, Tizairt, is celebrated for its wood-carving. The objects most usually manufactured are maces, not unlike those of Gog and Magog, spoons and trinkets connected by chains cut out of a single piece of wood.

We visited our host, the Sheikh of Tizairt, who has a large and commodious pile of buildings; also the ex-Sheikh, who has built himself a very large house in the French style, and furnished it with chairs and tables, and as many bottles of good things to drink as a buvette at a railway station. He was very anxious that we should recommend him to the authorities, in order that he might be reinstated in his position; but we stopped him at once with the observation that we were guests of Government, as it were, and it would ill become us to interfere with matters which did not concern us. Similar requests were frequently made, but always answered in the same sense.

On the 22nd we set out for Akbou. After leaving Tizairt the road descends rapidly, passing numerous picturesquely-situated Kabyle villages, and enters the Oued es-Sahel, a little below the ruins of Bordj Tazmalt, a fort destroyed during the last insurrection. Here it is proposed to build a village, to which will be attached 6,700 acres of land; each concessionaire will have a village lot, a garden and a patch of olive trees, and two lots of cultivable land, aggregating 80 acres; 1,247 acres are divided into seven farms, and 1,030 are reserved as communal land.

We here entered the great valley called Oued es-Sahel, or river of the coast—known to the ancients by the name of Nasava, or Nasabath—which commences near Aumale, and terminates in the Gulf of Bougie. Like most of the rivers of Algeria, it changes its name according to the territory it traverses; thus it is successively called Oued Akbou, Oued Soumam, Oued Beni Mesaoud, Oued el-Kebir, and Oued es-Sahel. Its average width is about forty yards, but in some places it is as much as two hundred.

After traversing the rich plain of the Beni Melekeuch, covered with corn and olive trees, we pass on our right hand the celebrated Mound of Akbou, and soon reach the village itself.

Akbou is the ancient Ausum, and is the country of the well-known Si Mohammed bin Ali Cherif, who rendered great service to France, and was decorated with the Legion of Honour and created Bach-Agha of Chellata. Having unfortunately allowed himself to be drawn into the insurrection of 1871, he was tried and convicted at Constantine, but subsequently received a free pardon from Marshal de MacMahon, President of the Republic, who better than any man living knew the value of his former services.

A new village has been founded here, to which a vain attempt has been made to attach the name of Metz; it is admirably situated on an elevated mound to the north of the high road, with a charming view looking both up and down the valley. About thirty houses of a superior description were finished at the time of our visit, and the land allotted to the colonists appears to be of an unusually good quality. The great drawback is the want of water, which has to be brought in an open channel a distance of seven or eight miles; this is liable to be deranged by storms, and could easily be cut off by an enemy.

Close to it is the old Bordj of Ben Ali Cherif, purchased by the State before the insurrection, and now used as a residence for the officers of the Bureau Arabe. There are two auberges here, one in the village and the other on the high road below it.

On the opposite side of the river is a ridge of steep hills close to its right bank, called Geldaman, the western point of which has been separated from the rest by the river, and now forms an isolated mamelon in the middle of the plain called the Piton d’Akbou, which is seen from a great distance on both sides. On a small platform at the west side of this hill, and about 100 feet above its base, is a remarkable Roman mausoleum, still in an excellent state of preservation. It consists of a pyramid surmounting a cubical base, three sides of which are decorated with false windows, whilst the fourth had a door, no longer in its place, but also probably of stone. The pivot was of immense size, the hole to receive it being nearly six inches in diameter. The whole structure is raised on four steps, reduced to three on the east side by the slope of the hill. The interior, which is thirteen feet square, has a wagon vault roof, constructed, like all the rest of the building, of finely-cut stone. Three of the sides interiorly are decorated by double arches, once no doubt supported on columns. On the fourth side, the door being a little larger than the false windows, there is one larger arch, and a smaller one on each side. The windows outwardly occupy the position of the interior columns. Of the superior pyramid five courses still remain in place. Above the door was an inscription in white marble, fragments of which still exist in the corners of the panel made to receive it. The execution of the monument is admirable, but the style is debased.

We did not remain at the village of Akbou, but pushed on a few miles further to Azib esh-Sheikh, the charming residence of my friend and near neighbour at Algiers, Ben Ali Cherif. The house is large and comfortable; of the interior, of course, I can say nothing, but outside there is a row of guest-chambers, clean and spacious; and in the ravine below, on the banks of a considerable stream, is a beautiful garden of flowers and fruit trees, in which is a pavilion shaded from every ray of sun, and furnished in the most luxurious manner. He is the only Arab I ever met in the interior of the colony who took any interest in horticulture, or seemed to care for the cultivation of fruit. He has a European gardener in his service, and there are few gardens, even at Algiers, so beautifully kept, and none so plentifully irrigated. In addition to this, he has been most successful in introducing a better system of cultivation on his estate, and has constructed a European olive oil mill, which is most remunerative.

We spent part of May 22 and 23 at this delightful retreat, and having engaged fresh mules, and obtained spahis acquainted with the country from the Commandant de Beaumont, and recommendations to the Kabyle chiefs on the road, we commenced the ascent of the Djurdjura range, through a rich and highly cultivated country, abounding in fig, olive and ash trees. The two first are the riches of the country, the last (Fraxinus Australis) is also of great utility, as its leaves afford excellent food for sheep and goats in summer and autumn when the grass fails.

At two hours’ distance is the village of Chellata, the chief place in the country of Illoula, and the ancestral home of Ben Ali Cherif. There is a large Zaouia here for the education of Kabyle youth—one of the most renowned in North Africa—kept up at his expense; and in the inclosure in front of it are interred the members of his family. To visit such a holy place as this in Tunis or Morocco would be impossible; in Algeria the Mohammedans no longer dare to exclude Christians from their mosques, but it requires very little penetration to see that their presence is most distasteful to them. This we particularly observed at Chellata. Beyond this the place is of no interest, and, like all other villages in the Kabylia of Djurdjura, it is extremely filthy, a marked contrast to the scrupulous cleanliness of those on the other side of the Oued es-Sahel.

We pitched our tents on a grassy slope, well clear of the village and its evil odours, and were on our mules before daybreak on the following morning, hoping to see the sunrise from the summit. It took us an hour to reach the Col de Chellata, one of the passes leading from the Oued es-Sahel, across the Djurdjura range, between the peaks of Tili-jouen on the left, and Tizi-bart (5,670 feet) on the right. From the top of the former, which we ascended, there is an unequalled view, in some respects finer than that from Chellia, inasmuch as the foreground possesses greater boldness and variety of outline.

Commencing from the west, there is a splendid view of the whole crest of the Djurdjura range, with its two most conspicuous peaks, Azrou-n-Tehour (5,980 feet) and Tamgout Lalla Khadidja (7,542). These are crowned by Welis or Saints’ tombs, favourite places of pilgrimage with the Kabyles; indeed, the latter is esteemed hardly less venerable than the Holy Cities of Mecca and Medina, and a pilgrimage to it certainly more meritorious than one to Kerouan. Beyond these, to the north, are the country of the Beni Illilten, Fort National, and the sea in the extreme distance. More than fifty villages can be counted in this direction. On the opposite side of the pass are Babor, Ta-Babor, crowned with their forests of cedar and pinsapo, and the mountains of the Beni Abbas complete the panorama, while the ever-present mamelon of Akbou, surrounded by a great stretch of level ground, thickly covered with olive groves, occupies the foreground to the south. The effects of light and shade at sunrise can never be forgotten. I have travelled through Algeria in every direction, and in most of the Regency of Tunis as well, but I know of nothing so grand as the view from the Col de Chellata and the short ride between Boni and Geläa.

After passing through this defile the road descends rapidly towards the Tifilkouth or river of the Beni Illilten by a steep and difficult road, but one of exquisite beauty. The whole country is cultivated with as much care as a garden. The road is completely overshadowed by magnificent ash trees, while the banks on either hand are covered with ferns, broom, wild roses, and flowers of every colour. A clear cool stream flows at the bottom, overshadowed with magnificent wild cherry trees. We stopped here for breakfast, and it required all my authority as leader of the expedition to force my followers to mount their mules and leave this fairy dell. The road ascends the opposite bank, passes the village of Tifilkouth, and winds through the most delightfully shady lanes and orchards, mounting and descending almost perpendicular precipices, crossing rapid streams, but always passing from one scene of loveliness to another, till after a ride of two hours from the stream where we breakfasted, or five hours from Chellata, we reached the village of Soumar. The only spot sufficiently level to accommodate our tents was the village cemetery, and here we pitched them, and passed a very pleasant night, undisturbed by the shades of those who rested beneath us.

The head man, or Amin el Oumina, as usual, entertained us with true Berber hospitality, and would fain have had us to lodge in his own house; but, much as we liked our Kabyle friends, and ready as we always were to see their inner life and manners, we could not brave the hosts of fleas with which they are surrounded.

Soumar is situated in the country of the Beni Teourigh, close under Tirourda, at the head of the long stretch of valleys abutting on that mountain. Leaving this, a ride of fifteen minutes brought us to the high road which is being constructed from Fort National to the Oued es-Sahel by the Col de Tirourda, and close to a house which has been erected by the Engineer Department for its employés. The distance hence to the fort is nineteen miles.

The scenery now changed somewhat—it never ceases to be exceedingly grand—and the view of the Djurdjura range improves as it is seen in full front, instead of foreshortened from one end.

But alas! we are once more within the influence of what we have so successfully avoided during the last two months—high roads and guide-books. The admirably engineered, but bare and shadeless road, with its regular curves and gentle gradients, becomes intolerable after the wild and shady lanes and natural scenery in which we have travelled so long; and it is not without a feeling of relief that we reach Fort National, thence to proceed by the prosaic but convenient diligence to Algiers. We made one last protest against civilisation; instead of passing the night in the auberge at the fort, we pitched our tents on the historic battle-field of Icherridhen, and only arrived at the village next morning in time to catch the diligence.