CHAPTER III
JOURNEY TO ABBEOKUTA.
The Crowthers—River Ogun—Ogboi Creek—Nymphæa—Rhizophora Mangle—Villages in the Swamp—Steam Navigation on the Ogun—Fish-Snares—Current—Rocky Bed—Crossing on Calabashes—"Agayen"—Subterranean Streams—Aro—Orange Cottage.
I REMAINED at Lagos nearly six weeks, and my colleague, Dr. Delany, not having arrived, I determined on at once setting out for Abbeokuta. I left on the 29th of August, accompanied by Messrs. Samuel and Josiah Crowther, sons of the worthy native missionary, the Rev. Samuel Crowther.
The journey from Lagos to Abbeokuta is usually made by canoes, up the river Ogun, the waters of which empty into the bay of Lagos. Somewhat west of its embouchure is the Ogboi creek or cut, communicating with the Ogun about ten or twelve miles from the bay. Canoe-men always prefer reaching the river by means of this cut, as the distance direct up the river is greater. There was abundance of the beautiful water-plant "Nymphæa," now in flower, in places where the current was gentle. The land on both sides the cut is low, swampy and thickly covered with mangrove, (Rhizophora Mangle.) Notwithstanding this, there are two villages in the midst of the swamps, the inhabitants of which enjoy good health, affording an example of a fact often noticed in the West-Indies and tropical America, that people might live with impunity in the midst of regions from which is constantly distilled the most dangerous miasma.[1]
The Ogun is navigable for steam-vessels of not over five feet draft during seven or eight months of the year, namely, from about a fortnight after the first rainy season in May, to December, about a month after the cessation of the last rains. After this time the quantity of water diminishes rapidly, so that in February and March an infant could easily ford it at places where it was not long before as deep and wide as the Schuylkill at Philadelphia.
Vessels of the same draft can during the other four or five months always ascend as far as Gaun, about one third the distance. There being plenty of water at the time I ascended, the journey to Abbeokuta took five days. When the river is very high, or, as in the last of the dry season, has but little water, the journey takes from ten to fifteen days. In the former case it is necessary to proceed very slowly and cautiously along the margin of the water, where frequent obstructions are encountered, and in the latter, the water being in many places only a few inches deep, the canoes must often be unloaded and sometimes carried over places where they could not possibly float. At any time, however, except in the height of the rainy season when the roads are much flooded, the journey can be performed by land in two or three days. The water is of a whitish tinge, from holding in suspension argilaceous matter and minute fragments of the constituents of granite, particularly feldspar. There is abundance of fish, to catch which the natives attach snares to strong ropes made from the stems of a species of creeping palm, (Calamus,) passed across the river and fastened on both sides to trees. These ropes offer some impediments to navigation, frequently upsetting canoes, and causing the loss of their freight. The current, to within ten or fifteen miles of Lagos, is very strong, due doubtless to the regular but very marked elevation of the interior country. There is generally an annual overflow of its banks. Although far more water falls in the former rainy season in May, June and July, than during the latter in September, October and November, yet the river never overflows till in the latter season, since the former rains are eagerly absorbed by the soil, which with every thing else is then exceedingly dry from the prevalence of the harmattan winds immediately previous. Many large trees are then washed away and drifted into the channel, which are very troublesome to travellers on the river. There are extensive forests on the banks, from which fuel could be obtained in abundance, and which would furnish considerable freight in the form of timber to both Abbeokuta and Lagos. It offers also fine facilities in some places for water-power.
Above Abbeokuta, on account of the very rocky character of its bed, the Ogun is not navigable even for canoes. At places, however, where it intersects the roads, canoes could in the rainy season be used with advantage to convey goods and passengers across, but the natives use instead large calabashes, on which the passenger sits, the ferryman swimming and pushing his freight before him. They not only prefer the use of calabashes, but will have nothing whatever to do with canoes, and affect to despise those who use them. Not unfrequently I heard the term "agayen" reproachfully applied by the people of the interior towns to my interpreter and other persons from places on or near the sea-coast. The word simply means canoe-men.
I crossed the Ogun in three places above Abbeokuta; the first time between Oyo and Isehin, next between Biocu and Beracudu, and finally between the last place and Abbeokuta, distant respectively five days, two days, and two hours' journey from Abbeokuta, the day's journey being from twenty-five to thirty miles. At these places I found the bed of the river covered to such an extent with masses of granite rock, that it could be easily crossed dryshod by stepping from stone to stone, although fully twenty-five yards wide. I found also the water wider and deeper than it is from Abbeokuta to ten miles below. The reason of this perhaps is that the irregular rocky surface of its bed above Abbeokuta retards the progress of the water, and for the same reason it is not absorbed as it is below Abbeokuta, where the bed is sandy. We found all through the country brooks and rivulets apparently dry in some places, while at other points lower down the course, the water was gushing out clear and sweet. It is possible too to procure water by making slight excavations in the apparently dry sandy beds of what had been in the rainy season impassable rivers.
On the 4th September we arrived at Aro, where we found horses awaiting us, for the Crowthers had sent before to order them. Aro is the landing-place for the city of Abbeokuta in the rainy season; Agbamiya, a point lower down the river, being used in the dry season. It, the former is four miles below Ake, the business centre of the city, and about a mile and a half from the city gate. Above Aro the river is too rocky to permit canoes to ascend into the city. This place is doubtless destined to become of considerable importance; already all the merchants have depots there, and hereafter will also find it of advantage to make it their residence, when it is likely to be included in the city limits. In little more than an hour after we left Aro, we were comfortably domiciled at "Orange Cottage," the beautiful little dwelling of my kind companions, the Crowthers.
- ↑ See similar example in Backie's Narrative, p. 195.