Back to Africa: Arabs

[Ignatieff]

Marvellous!!!  Where did the 'stereotypical' poster come from.  Its mental!

[Plynkes]

It's from a book called "Heroes of the Dark Continent"  by J.W. Buel (1890).


This is the bit of text that goes with the picture:

Of the slaves born in captivity about Zanzibar he [Burton] says: "They are treated like one of the family, because the master's comfort depends upon his slaves being contented. The Arabs spoil them by a kinder usage. They seldom punish them, for fear of desertion. Yet the slave, if dissatisfied, silently leaves the house, lets himself to another master, and returns after perhaps two years' absence as if nothing had occurred. Thus he combines the advantages of freedom and slavery."



The most horrible features inseparably connected with the slave trade are those which concern female slaves. These command a higher price than males, for the reasons that they are more valuable for domestic purposes, less liable to desert, and, in shame be it said, they are valued still more highly because they can be put to abominable uses; for these base purposes, however, only the youthful, between the ages of ten and twenty years, are in request. In an equatorial climate females reach their maturity at about the age of thirteen, so that after twenty they begin to age rapidly, and at twenty-five they are what the French call passé. A century of the most active civilizing and Christianizing influence will be required to stamp out this evil practice.


The entire book is available on the Edgar Rice Burroughs Webzine. It's on there because they reckon E.R.B. used it as a kind of African encyclopedia when writing the Tarzan stories.

>>>> LINK<<<<

If you skip to the bottom of the page there are links to galleries of the illustrations. There's some pretty interesting stuff in there. Some of them quite funny, all of them oozing with period flavour.

[Smokeyrone]

That's great stuff.

I used to run around with the author of "Mountains of the Moon" back in the Ozarks.  He was a big Burton fan. (obviously)

Which reminds me, the native girls in NW Arkansas liked to run around topless as well. You could see lots of boobies. (except they were blonde hippy girls) 

That's why I joined the Ultimate Frisbee team shortly after arrival, as hippy girls are all around Ultimate contests (plus, it got me lots of criminal clients after I graduated L school)

[argsilverson]

Plynkes
a very great collection of Arabs (when they will appear in some action?)

and a very nice collection of drawings you have.

[Ignatieff]

Magnificent! I will dig out this book this evening!!  On the Arkansas connection, I have the terrifying image of Hilary Clinton flashing up in front of me.  Tell me it aint true!!!  

[Smokeyrone]

Magnificent! I will dig out this book this evening!!  On the Arkansas connection, I have the terrifying image of Hilary Clinton flashing up in front of me.  Tell me it aint true!!!  

Funny you say that.  There is a tale, oft repeated, of her bra ending up in a tree during a Nam protest.  ( No one knows if it came off her, or she brought a spare bra?)

 

[Plynkes]

[Moderator hat on:] Now, now, lads. Please try and stay on topic. Colonial Adventures is a bra-free zone.

[Silent Invader]

Lovely work Plynkes......  I have a Morrocan FFL/Berber project bubbling away at the back of my mind and you are teasing it to the fore.

[Bravo Six]

Those look great Plynkes!

-Todd

[Smokeyrone]

Yeas, those pictures are great, over the top, and right up my alley in terms of proper jingoism.

Plnykes must visit the US at one of our cons and run a DA game, I think.

[Gluteus Maximus]

Thanks very much for posting the link to the Buel book. I vaguely remember being told about it years ago, but had forgotten all about it.

The illustrations are absolutely magnificent and I now have plenty of ideas for colonial forts, native canoes, villages and all sorts of African scenery.

Shame the text is online, as I have real problems trying to read large amounts of stuff off a screen and it is not feasible for me to print it all out:(

The good news is there are several copies available at various online booksellers  

This is a very impressive pic - I'm hoping there is some artistic licence with Speke's distance from the rhino  



 

edit for ridiculously bad typing errors

[Plynkes]

The main problem with modern editions of these kind of books is that they always leave out the pictures. I have some Sam Baker ones that originally were chock full of pics like these, but not in my copies. To quote Lewis Carroll...

"...And what is the use of a book," thought Alice, "without pictures or conversations?"

 

[Smokeyrone]

I know, I hate books without photos and maps, especially history fare.

First thing I do is search for maps.  No maps, no sale!

(Damn Martin Gilbert!  He wrote some FANTASTIC Geography books, with maps all over, then he writes the driest WWI book ever, with scarcely a map.  DRY, I mean the book reads like eating salted pork rinds with no beer!)


I ws also dissapointed that "Heather Has Two Mommies" (required rading in our school system) had no pictures either!   

[sepoy1857]

Very nice indeed! Really like them all...but the blues on the sheik are exceptional. Well done.

[cram]

Bought an original copy of "Heroes of the Dark Continent" off ebay last night for £29, added cost of £10 p&p, its coming from some bloke in Israel, I hope I've won it for a decent price! Can't wait to get my hands on it now