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Fire Protection Engineering

Applications for Large Transportation


Systems in China Fang Li
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Fang Li
Huahui Li

Fire Protection
Engineering
Applications
for Large
Transportation
Systems in China
Fire Protection Engineering Applications for Large
Transportation Systems in China
Fang Li • Huahui Li

Fire Protection Engineering


Applications for Large
Transportation Systems
in China
Fang Li Huahui Li
Research Scientist IKEA
Worcester Polytechnic Institute Xuhui District, Shanghai, China
Worcester, MA, USA

ISBN 978-3-030-58368-2    ISBN 978-3-030-58369-9 (eBook)


https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58369-9

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021


This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of
the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation,
broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information
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The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication
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The publisher, the authors, and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book
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claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
Contents

1 Introduction����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������    1
1.1 Definition of Large Transportation Hub�������������������������������������������    1
1.2 Large Transportation Hubs Accelerate Urban Development������������    4
1.2.1 The Development of Internationally Famous
Transportation Hubs��������������������������������������������������������������    5
1.2.2 The Development of Main Logistics-Based
Transportation Hubs in China ����������������������������������������������   11
1.3 The Spatial Patterns of Transportation Hubs������������������������������������   17
1.3.1 The Spatial Patterns of Large Modern Railway Hubs����������   17
1.3.2 The Spatial Patterns of Large Modern Airport
Terminals������������������������������������������������������������������������������   24
1.3.3 The New “Multistory and Underground”
Constructional Forms������������������������������������������������������������   28
1.3.4 Underground High-Speed Railway Station��������������������������   28
1.3.5 Ultra-Long Shield Tunnel ����������������������������������������������������   30
1.4 Fire Hazards in Large Transportation Hubs��������������������������������������   30
1.5 Significance of the Research������������������������������������������������������������   34
2 The Characteristics of Fire Control in Large
Transportation Hubs ������������������������������������������������������������������������������   35
2.1 The Functional Areas in Large Transportation Hubs������������������������   35
2.1.1 Ticket Hall����������������������������������������������������������������������������   35
2.1.2 Waiting Hall��������������������������������������������������������������������������   35
2.1.3 Boarding Area ����������������������������������������������������������������������   37
2.1.4 Baggage Claim����������������������������������������������������������������������   37
2.1.5 Arrival Hall ��������������������������������������������������������������������������   38
2.1.6 Transfer Channel������������������������������������������������������������������   39
2.1.7 Urban Access Tunnel������������������������������������������������������������   39
2.2 Typical Spaces of Large Transportation Hubs����������������������������������   40
2.2.1 Large and Tall Spaces ����������������������������������������������������������   40
2.2.2 Vertical Space in Atrium ������������������������������������������������������   41

v
vi Contents

2.2.3 Underground Space��������������������������������������������������������������   42


2.2.4 The Long and Narrow Space of Tunnels������������������������������   45
2.3 Fire Risk of Typical Components in Major
Transportation Hubs��������������������������������������������������������������������������   47
2.3.1 Fire Risk of Steel Structure��������������������������������������������������   47
2.3.2 The Fire Hazards of Glass Wall��������������������������������������������   52
2.4 Human Factors����������������������������������������������������������������������������������   55
2.4.1 The Characteristics of Passenger Flow
in Transportation Hubs����������������������������������������������������������   55
2.4.2 Effects of High-Density Crowd to Evacuation in Fire����������   58
2.4.3 Analysis of Evacuee Number������������������������������������������������   58
2.4.4 Calculation of Move Time����������������������������������������������������   59
2.4.5 The Composition and Characteristics of People������������������   63
2.5 Brief Summary����������������������������������������������������������������������������������   63
3 Fire Safety Design for Large Transportation Hubs������������������������������   65
3.1 Development of US and Chinese Standard Systems������������������������   65
3.1.1 History of US Fire Safety Standards
for Transportation Hubs��������������������������������������������������������   65
3.1.2 History of Chinese Fire Safety Standards
for Transportation Hubs��������������������������������������������������������   67
3.2 Comparison Between US and Chinese Codes (Table 3.1)����������������   69
3.3 Performance-Based Fire Safety Design for Large
Transportation Hubs��������������������������������������������������������������������������   78
3.3.1 Proposal of Performance-Based Fire Safety Design������������   78
3.3.2 Process and Objectives of Performance-Based Fire
Safety Design for Large Transportation Hubs����������������������   81
3.3.3 Performance-Based Fire Safety Design Approach
for Large Transportation Hubs����������������������������������������������   81
3.3.4 Important Concepts in Performance-Based Design��������������   85
3.3.5 Important Parameters of Performance-Based Design����������   89
3.4 Chapter Summary ����������������������������������������������������������������������������   98
4 Fire Safety Strategies for Typical Space of Large
Transportation Hubs ������������������������������������������������������������������������������   99
4.1 Fire Compartmentation ��������������������������������������������������������������������   99
4.1.1 Tradition Fire Compartmentation ����������������������������������������   99
4.1.2 Dynamic Fire Compartmentation ���������������������������������������� 100
4.1.3 Super Large Fireproof Glass������������������������������������������������ 101
4.1.4 Traffic Tunnel Fire Compartmentation �������������������������������� 102
4.2 Smoke Control and Extraction Design �������������������������������������������� 103
4.2.1 Smoke Control and Extraction Design for Large
Transportation Hub Buildings���������������������������������������������� 103
4.2.2 Smoke Control and Extraction Design for Transit
Tunnels���������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 104
Contents vii

4.3 Application of the Cold Smoke Removal Function


of Central Air Conditioning for Large Space������������������������������������ 107
4.4 Fire Safety for Steel Structure���������������������������������������������������������� 108
4.5 Safe Evacuation�������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 111
4.5.1 Safe Evacuation in Transportation Hub Buildings���������������� 111
4.5.2 Special Evacuation Design for Airport Terminals���������������� 112
4.5.3 Emergency Evacuation in Transit Tunnels���������������������������� 114
4.5.4 Special Evacuation Strategy for Subway Stations���������������� 119
4.5.5 Application of Egress Passageway in Traffic Hubs�������������� 123
4.6 Design of Water Fire-Fighting System for Large
Transportation Hubs�������������������������������������������������������������������������� 123
4.6.1 Water Fire-Fighting System for Buildings
of Transportation Hub Stations �������������������������������������������� 123
4.6.2 Traffic Tunnel Water Fire-Fighting System�������������������������� 124
4.7 Fire Rescue���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 127
4.7.1 Fire Rescue for Transportation Hub Buildings �������������������� 127
4.7.2 Fire Rescue in the Traffic Tunnel������������������������������������������ 128
4.8 Fire Safety Management ������������������������������������������������������������������ 129
4.8.1 Routine Maintenance and Care�������������������������������������������� 129
4.8.2 Staff Training������������������������������������������������������������������������ 130
4.8.3 Fire-Fighting Equipment������������������������������������������������������ 130
4.8.4 Control and Communication������������������������������������������������ 130
4.8.5 Assistance in Evacuation������������������������������������������������������ 131
4.9 Summary of the Chapter ������������������������������������������������������������������ 131
5 Case Analysis of Performance-Based Fire Safety Design
for Large Transportation Hub: Shanghai Hongqiao
Integrated Transportation Hub�������������������������������������������������������������� 133
5.1 Project Overview������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 133
5.1.1 Overview������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 133
5.1.2 Floor Planning���������������������������������������������������������������������� 135
5.1.3 Major Fire Safety Issues ������������������������������������������������������ 137
5.2 Fire Safety Strategies������������������������������������������������������������������������ 138
5.2.1 Fire Compartmentation Strategy������������������������������������������ 138
5.2.2 Smoke Control Strategy�������������������������������������������������������� 141
5.2.3 Safe Evacuation Strategy������������������������������������������������������ 145
5.2.4 Steel Structure Fire Safety Strategy�������������������������������������� 153
5.2.5 Fire Safety System���������������������������������������������������������������� 153
5.3 Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis���������������������������������������������� 154
5.3.1 Hazard Source Identification and Fire Hazard Analysis ������ 154
5.3.2 Designed Fires���������������������������������������������������������������������� 154
5.3.3 Fire Scenario Setup �������������������������������������������������������������� 157
5.3.4 Evacuation Safety Analysis�������������������������������������������������� 158
5.4 Summary of the Chapter ������������������������������������������������������������������ 162
viii Contents

6 Application of New Technologies in Fire Safety for Large


Transportation Hubs ������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 163
6.1 Application of BIM Technology in Fire Engineering���������������������� 163
6.1.1 Application of BIM in Fire Safety Design Stage������������������ 163
6.1.2 Application of BIM in Construction Stage �������������������������� 165
6.1.3 Application of BIM in Acceptance and Cost
Accounting Stage������������������������������������������������������������������ 166
6.1.4 Application of BIM in Operation and Maintenance
Stage�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 166
6.2 Application of IoT Technology in Fire Safety���������������������������������� 167
6.2.1 Application of IoT Technology in Fire Safety
Facility Management������������������������������������������������������������ 167
6.2.2 Application of IoT Technology in Fire Safety
Management�������������������������������������������������������������������������� 168
6.2.3 Application of IoT Technology in Fire Supervision ������������ 170
6.2.4 Application of IoT Technology in Fire Emergency
Response ������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 170
6.3 Safety Protection and Fire Safety in Transportation Hubs���������������� 172
6.4 UAV Fire Extinguishing Technology������������������������������������������������ 176
6.5 Chapter Summary ���������������������������������������������������������������������������� 177
7 Conclusions and Prospects���������������������������������������������������������������������� 179

References �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 183

Index������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 185
Chapter 1
Introduction

1.1 Definition of Large Transportation Hub

A large transportation hub is a significant constituent of a national or regional trans-


portation system in cities such as airport and railway and supporting urban transport
facilities such as rail transit station, public transport hub station, social parking
garage, taxi business station, etc., which plays an important role and position in the
urban passenger transport hub system.
The large transportation hub is the junction negotiating the routes of various
transport modes. The installed equipment and mobile equipment together form a
whole entity which serves as a hub to undertake the direct and transferring traffic
and connect other cities. According to different transport modes, transportation
hubs can be divided into rail hubs, bus hubs, airline hubs, and waterway hubs [1]
(Fig. 1.1).
Social development has quickened the step of urbanization and led to urban pop-
ulation’s sharp rise. With traditional small transportation hubs failing to meet the
travel needs, people began to travel by plane and railways for convenience and bud-
get reasons, and since then, some airports and stations developed into large contem-
porary transportation hubs. Tables 1.1 and 1.2 list some busiest airport terminals and
railway stations in the world:
As the biggest financial center in China, Shanghai, being famous for Shanghai
Disney-themed park, is rated as the world-level first-tier city by world authority
GaWC. As one of the most populated cities in China, Shanghai has formed a large
comprehensive transportation network composed of five transportation modes of
railway, waterway, roadway, aviation, and rail. The Shanghai Hongqiao
Comprehensive Traffic Hub, which was designed by East China Architectural
Design Institute, is the first to integrate high-speed rail and airport worldwide. In
2018, Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport was titled as “Platinum Airport” by
IATA and certificated as “five-star airport” in the Skytrax “2019 World Airport
Competition” Award Ceremony held in London in 2019 (Fig. 1.2).

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021 1


F. Li, H. Li, Fire Protection Engineering Applications for Large Transportation
Systems in China, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58369-9_1
2 1 Introduction

Fig. 1.1 Examples of transportation hubs

Table 1.1 Ten busiest airports in the world by passenger traffic in 2019 [1]
Number of passengers
Airport Location Country handled
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Atlanta, Georgia United States 107.3 million
International Airport
Beijing Capital International Chaoyang-Shunyi, China 100.9 million
Airport Beijing
Dubai International Airport Garhoud, Dubai United Arab 89.1 million
Emirates
Los Angeles International Los Angeles, United States 87.5 million
Airport California
Tokyo International Airport Tokyo Japan 87.1 million
O’Hare International Airport Chicago, Illinois United States 83.3 million
Heathrow Airport Hillingdon, London United 80.1 million
Kingdom
Hong Kong International Hong Kong China 74.5 million
Airport
Shanghai Pudong International Pudong, Shanghai China 74 million
Airport
Charles de Gaulle Airport Île-de-France France 72.2 million
1.1 Definition of Large Transportation Hub 3

Table 1.2 Ten busiest railway station in the world


Number of passengers
Location Country handled
Nanjing South Railway Station Nanjing China 32 million
Gare de Paris-Est Paris France 34 million
Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Shanghai China 52.7 million
Station
Wuhan Railway Station Wuhan China 73.6 million
Munich Central Station Munich Germany 127.75 million
Zhengzhou East Railway Station Zhengzhou China 147 million
Guangzhou New Railway Station Guangzhou China 170 million
Grand Central Terminal New York United 182.5 million
States
Tokyo Station Tokyo Japan 383 million

Fig. 1.2 Shanghai Hongqiao comprehensive traffic hub

With the gradual perfection of the passenger transportation and cargo


t­ransportation as well as various auxiliary facilities around Hongqiao comprehen-
sive traffic hub, the huge passenger traffic attracted by the station not only bring
along the tourist and business market along the city but also give more chance to
various elements to flow; as a result, many city resources witnessed a further opti-
mization and integration around the Hongqiao traffic hub, forming a city subcenter
with the traffic hub at its core (Fig. 1.3).
The rise of large transportation hubs has posed unprecedented difficulties and
challenges to fire protection design. The book will collect data about several large
transportation hubs, make investigation into them, explore the spatial organization
types, and make a summarization. Departing from performance-based fire
4 1 Introduction

Fig. 1.3 The principle of commercial layout in Hongqiao traffic hub

p­ rotection, using a digital simulation of fire smoke diffusion and people evacuation,
it will analyze the data result and discuss evacuation scenarios and eventually
explore further to find better approaches for safety design of large transporta-
tion hubs.

1.2  arge Transportation Hubs Accelerate Urban


L
Development

Transport infrastructure is the precondition for a well-functional city as well as its


economic and social development. Good transport infrastructure promotes a city’s
economic development by creating more opportunities to connect surrounding areas
and other cities in the world and helps maintain its long-standing position as a trans-
portation hub. Internationally famous transportation hubs include Chicago,
Frankfurt, Dubai, and Hong Kong.
1.2 Large Transportation Hubs Accelerate Urban Development 5

1.2.1  he Development of Internationally Famous


T
Transportation Hubs
1.2.1.1 Chicago

Located in the heartland of the North American continent, Chicago is an important


railway and airline hub, apart from being a financial, cultural, manufacturing,
futures, and commodity trading center.

With a sprawling transport networks, entitled America’s Arteries, Chicago is a


hub for waterway, railway, and air transportation. Via Saint Lawrence River and
Mississippi River, it has direct accesses to Europe and Mexico Gulf. As the most
important node on American railway network, it negotiates the central and northern
6 1 Introduction

lines, with 37 main lines and 35,000 carriages coming and going daily. Its total
mileage of 12,400 km and annual freight amount of 512 million tons both top other
major cities in the world. Chicago has two international airports, O’Hare International
Airport and Midway International Airport. As one of the busiest airports in the
world, O’Hare International Airport is in the front rank in the United States as well
as in the world in terms of plane traffic, passenger numbers, and cargo tonnages and
receives more than 69 million passengers annually.
It is a world-class financial center; home to many superlative financial institu-
tions; the biggest exchange for damageable goods; the biggest, earliest future and
option trading exchange; and the futures exchange holding a record high turnover.
Some large banks or financial setups also headquarter or set up branches here. Over
300 US banks, over 40 branches of foreign banks, and over 16 insurance companies
have settled here, among which 33 are listed in Fortune 500 and 47 are Forbes
500 firms.

1.2.1.2 Frankfurt

Frankfurt is located in central Europe and the heartland of Germany. Defined by a


favorable location, Frankfurt has developed into an important transportation hub
and business, financial, and international convention center of Germany and Europe.
Frankfurt is at the crossroads of the European continent, serving as a transporta-
tion hub for Rhine-Main and Europe. Frankfurt is one of the most important railway
nodes in Europe and the only passage leading from western European countries to
Munich. In Europe, Frankfurt Airport has the largest freight amount, while its pas-
senger capacity is only second to London Heathrow International Airport, which
undoubtedly makes it an internationally important air transportation hub. The flights
in Frankfurt Airport fly to and from five continents, and all international airlines
bound for European countries transfer in Frankfurt, although the departure cities
1.2 Large Transportation Hubs Accelerate Urban Development 7

also have direct flights. Well-equipped railway and airline infrastructure, a transport
network covering Europe and connecting the world, these laid foundation for
Frankfurt’s role as an international transportation hub.
In the center of Germany and at the junction of European transport lines, the nice
geographic location attracts European Central Bank and Deutsche Bundesbank to
Frankfurt and makes it Europe’s financial center and one of the four financial cen-
ters in the world. Frankfurt Stock Exchange is one of the world’s largest exchanges.
Numerous financial institutions and the booming financial market solidify its posi-
tion of a global financial center.
Frankfurt is the busiest convention center in Europe. Every year, over 50,000
meetings were held here attracting more than 2.6 million senior executives, among
which 15 are prominent, including the International Consumer Goods Fair, the
International Sanitary Ware Heating and Air-Conditioning Expo, the Heimtextil, the
International Automobile Exhibition, the Cooking Appliances Exhibition, etc. It
ranks the first in the world in terms of the numbers, attendances, and grades of the
meetings. This is also reflected in the comparison of the core indicator data of
Frankfurt and the international convention cities of Munich and Shanghai, as shown
below (Table 1.3).

Table 1.3 Comparison of core indicators for the exhibition industry in Munich, Frankfurt, and
Shanghai
Indicators Explanation Munich Frankfurt Shanghai
Exhibition Area of the hall Total area of main hall 44 41 35.24
hall (unit:10 thousand m2)
Product to be Area for exhibition Scale factor of offshore 31.64 51.26 27.81
display rental area
Number of Scale factor of offshore 49.40 59.90 24.80
participating participating companies
companies
Number of audiences Scale factor of foreign 32.34 35 6.4
audiences
Involving Number of Number (unit: company) 178 178 74
companies professional
exhibiting company
Scale of professional Population (unit: 3121 3121 3700
exhibition company occupant)
Number of Total volume of 2 2 3
practitioner practitioner (unit:10
thousand occupants)
Number and scale of Number of exhibition 19 15 17
brand exhibition passing UFI certification
(unit: times)
8 1 Introduction

1.2.1.3 Dubai

As the largest city of the United Arab Emirates and the economic and financial cen-
ter of the Middle East or even of the world, Dubai bridges the eastern and western
capital markets.
Dubai Airport is the largest in the Middle East, and in 2018, its passenger
throughput reached 89.14 million and ranked the third in the world while with a
second largest international passenger throughput, which established its position as
an air transportation transfer hub for Europe, Africa, and Asia. As one of the most
important air transportation hubs in the world, flights departing from Dubai Airport
fly to 239 cities in North America, Europe, South America, East Asia, Southeast
Asia, South Asia, Oceania, and Africa.
With the support of the airport, Dubai’s influence as a financial center has
expanded from the region to the world. Adopting a liberal and steady economic
policy, Dubai enjoys a great reputation among all countries and in the international
industrial and commercial circles, and it is directing the domestic and foreign capi-
tal to the commercial, industrial, and service industries (Table 1.4).
Dubai is rich in tourism resources: a 64 km long beach, well-equipped resort
hotels plus sailing, water skiing, surfing, diving, fishing, golfing, desert safaris, bird
watching, and other recreational activities. The tourism boom of Dubai is driven by
the growth of its aviation industry. Oil only makes up 6% of its GDP, most of which
comes from tourism.
1.2 Large Transportation Hubs Accelerate Urban Development 9

Table 1.4 Ranking of global airport throughput in 2018


Passengers
Rank Rank (Enplaning and Percent
2018 2017 Airport city/Country/Code deplaning) change
1 1 Atlanta GA, US (ATL) 107,394,029 3.3
2 2 Beijing, CN (PEK) 100,983,290 5.4
3 3 Dubai, AE (DXB) 89,149,387 1.0
4 5 Los Angeles CA, US (LAX) 87,534,384 3.5
5 4 Tokyo, JP (HND) 87,131,973 2.0
6 6 Chicago IL, US (ORD) 83,339,186 4.4
7 7 London, GB (LHR) 80,126,320 2.7
8 8 Hong Kong, CN (HKG) 74,517,402 2.6
9 9 Shanghai, CN (PVG) 74,006,331 5.7
10 10 Paris, FR (CDG) 72,229,723 4.0
11 11 Amsterdam, NL (AMS) 71,053,147 3.7
12 16 New Delhi, IN (DEL) 69,900,938 10.2
13 13 Guangzhou, CN (CAN) 69,769,497 6.0
14 14 Frankfurt, DE (FRA) 69,510,269 7.8
15 12 Dallas/Fort Worth TX, US 69,112,607 3.0
(DFW)
16 19 Incheon, KR (ICN) 68,350,784 10.0
17 15 Istanbul, TR (IST) 68,192,683 6.4
18 17 Jakarta, ID (CGK) 66,908,159 6.2
19 18 Singapore, SG (SIN) 65,628,000 5.5
20 20 Denver CO, US (DEN) 64,494,613 5.1
TOP 20 FOR 2018 1,539,332,722 4.7

1.2.1.4 Hong Kong


1.3 The Spatial Patterns of Transportation Hubs 21

Fig. 1.9 Sketch map of leaving passenger flow

Intercity passengers enter the station through two check-in gates on each side of
the waiting hall, ride escalators or elevators to the entrance corridor of the exit floor
(i.e., the interlayer on the first floor), and then ride the corresponding escalator or
elevator to the platform.
After ticket check, travelers with special needs may use the barrier-free elevator
to go directly to the corresponding platform.
(3) The flow of leaving passengers (Shown as Fig. 1.9)
Long-distance passengers can go down to the exit corridor on the exit floor (the
interlayer on the first floor) by escalator and leave through the passenger exit plat-
form after ticket check. Travelers with special needs may use the barrier-free eleva-
tor to go directly to the entrance corridor on the entrance floor and leave through the
waiting room after ticket check.
Intercity passengers can leave the platform by escalators and go down to exit hall
(the interlayer on the first floor) on the exit floor and leave after ticket check.
Travelers with special needs may use the barrier-free elevator to go directly to the
entrance corridor on the entrance floor and leave through the transfer passage for
intercity travelers.
Passengers can walk along the exit platforms to the south or north square and
leave the station. Passengers on the east outbound platform take the nearest bus and
taxi to leave the station, while those on the west outbound platform take the nearest
taxi and self-contained car to leave the station. The passengers taking car use the
overbridge crossing over East Zhangchang Road and West Zhangchang Road in and
reach the under bridge throat area, where locates a large-scale parking lot for private
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shelter for the interpreters, merchants, supernumeraries, etc., and
everything was covered over to the best of our ability with our tents,
awnings, etc.
Well, we were under shelter now, and you know what kind of
shelter, from the inclemency of the rainy season and the bullets of
the Toucouleurs. We had still storms to expect, and against them we
were less well provided. We had already encountered a few of them
unprotected. We had had plenty of tents, of course, but we knew
from experience, that when we saw the preliminary fantasia of the
dried leaves on the left bank beginning, the best thing to do was to
put on as quickly as possible all the waterproofs to be had, and go
outside to meet the hurricane, turning our backs to it, and at the
same time tightening the ropes of the tents. It was really the only
way not to get it—I mean the tent, not the hurricane—on our
shoulders!
It took us a good month of hard work without any rest to establish
our camp. Every morning one party went to fetch straw, whilst the
rest of us kept guard at home and worked at the tata. We were all
glad enough when everything was done, but at the same time we
were rather afraid of the ennui of inaction, as the following quotation
from my notes will show—
“May 16.—The tata was finished this morning, the huts, a dining-
room, and a gurbi or servants’ hall, a kitchen, and an oven of a sort.
There is nothing left to do now, for Suzanne is the only member of
our expedition still without a shelter. Mon Dieu, how dull it will be!”
OSMAN.

Truth to tell, we did have some dull days, and no mistake; but of
course we should have had them in garrison or on board ship.
Fortunately, however, to relieve the monotony of our stay, a regular
world in miniature gathered about us, for we had eager visitors,
courtiers, accredited traders, not to speak of other guests we might
have had if we had chosen.
I must now introduce a few of these people. Two men played a
very important part in our existence at Fort Archinard. These two
were Osman and Pullo. The former was the man from Say, the
Koyrabero who had been waiting for us before we reached Sansan-
Haussa, no doubt to spy on us, and who had come down to Say with
us on the Davoust; a vulgar fellow, without either dignity or
intelligence, he played the ignoble rôle of go-between all the time we
were in the neighbourhood. Of Songhay race, with a dash of the
Fulah in his composition, he had the duplicity of the latter, whilst
retaining all the stupidity of the former.
He was physically a handsome fellow, with fine features, as black
as a crow, but he was getting old now, and was afflicted not only with
tubercular disease, but also with a kind of leprosy, which did not
prevent him from shaking hands with us three times a day.
He often came with a marabout named Ali, who was further gone
in consumption than himself.
Pullo, or Pullo Sidibé, to give his full title, was a very different kind
of man. Tall, thin, with a comparatively pale complexion, he wore a
filthy chechia or native cap a little on one side. He had a way of
moving his arms up and down like a semaphore, and really rather
resembled a big scarecrow in rags. With a mysterious air, such as a
Sibyl might wear, he was constantly taking one or another of us
aside to some corner, or to an ant-hill or mound, far from indiscreet
listeners, to impart in a solemn manner some utterly incredible false
news of which we shall have an example to give presently. I must
mention, too, the way in which he used to smile when we pointed out
to him in a friendly way the mistakes he had made. “Ah,” he would
say to me laughing, “I shall never go back to my fields as long as you
are here, I shall never look after my flock again. You are my milch
cow, you are my great lugan.”
He was at no pains to disguise the true motives for his devotion,
and we were at least able to hope to bind him to us by self-interest.
Osman and Pullo had certain qualities in common, for both were
equally covetous of presents, and equally ready to tell lies with
imperturbable seriousness; but whereas Pollo carried on his
deceptions with the air of a grand seignior and the smile of a
superior man, such as a Fulah might wear who had been brought in
contact with the Tuaregs, Osman showed his avarice and venality
without the slightest attempt at disguise.
The two enjoyed a monopoly of the news, generally false, as I
have already said, brought to us from the Say market. They hit upon
another dodge too, and a very lucrative one; this was to introduce to
us envoys more or less genuine, and more or less interesting, from
the chiefs of the outlying districts and villages. At first Pullo or
Khalifa, as he was also called, worked at this trade alone, and it
would be our first amusement in the morning to climb the ant-hill in
front of the fort and look out for him. We generally saw him pretty
soon, his approach heralded by a red spot on the horizon.
I read in my notes of May 16—“At about eight o’clock, far away on
the borders of the wood in the direction of Say, we see approaching
the thin figure of Pullo Sidibé, surmounted by his dirty fez, balanced
in an uncertain kind of way upon his head. He is followed by a
gentleman in a clean white bubu. ‘Page, pretty page,’ we cry, ‘what
news do you bring?’
With this extraordinary personage everything is possible. I expect
some morning to hear him announce with the air of some herald of a
great embassy, “Amadu Cheiku! the Emir el Munemin, or perhaps
even the Grand Turk, or her Majesty the Queen!”
All went well for some time with Pullo, but when Osman realized
the rewards to be obtained by bringing news or envoys, he set up as
a rival to our first friend. The envoys, who were generally picked up
in the Friday market at Say, now came in pairs, each with his own
showman.
PULLO KHALIFA.

After this opposition was set up, a syndicate was of course sure to
follow. I suspect, however, that if Osman sometimes got the
chestnuts out of the fire, it was generally Khalifa who ate them.
I had to dwell rather fully on these two fellows, they played such a
very preponderant part in our lives, but there were others of
secondary rank, so to speak, of whom I must say a few words.
To begin with, there was the acting chief of the opposite village
named Mamadu, as at least half of his fellow-believers are. With a
clear complexion and an intelligent expression, he was still a regular
scamp, ready to lend himself to any treachery. In the Fulah language
there is a word which means “give a little present so as to get a very
big one.” I am not sure whether there is any word corresponding to
this in Songhay, but there is not the slightest doubt that the
Koyraberos know how to practise the manœuvre suggested by the
word, and Mamadu was an adept at it. On one occasion, however,
his hopes of a present were disappointed, and he was guilty of a
very great mistake. We simply had to turn him out of the camp, and
from that moment he became all submission to us. Our coolies in
their free-spoken way nicknamed him the blackguard Mamadu, and
no doubt he had well merited the epithet by some dastardly deed
they knew of.
Amongst our constant visitors was
one quite small boy, the son of the
famous Abd el Kader of Timbuktu,
who had been the guest of the French
Geographical Society there, a
corresponding member of that of
Paris, the great diplomatist who had
been made a plenipotentiary in spite
of himself, and who had acted as
guide to my friend Caron in his grand
journey. Abd el Kader, when driven
from Timbuktu, wandered about in the
districts near the bend of the river. No
doubt under pretence of making a
A TYPICAL KOURTEYE.
pilgrimage to Mecca, he lived like a
true marabout at the expense of the
natives, seducing many women, and leaving many children behind
him whose mothers he had deserted. It is said that he is now with
Samory.
His little son to whom I referred above was called “the Arabu.” He
was very proud of his parentage, and looked upon his father as a
saint. Though small for his age, he had a big head of the shape
known as hydrocephalic, and was a very sensible, intelligent little
fellow, with quite refined instincts. From our first arrival at Say he had
bravely come to see us on our barges, and though he was trembling
in all his limbs as he spoke, he explained his position clearly to us.
We made a great fuss over him, giving him sugar to eat. The gamins
of Say looked upon him as partly a white, and partly what they call a
tubabu. Strange to say, when there was any difficulty with the
market-women, who sometimes made
a great noise, singing seditious songs
and dancing to their accompaniment,
shouting out praises of Aliburi or
Amadu, it was always the little Arabu
who was deputed to go and pacify
them. As he expressed it, “the son of
an ambassador, I too am an
ambassador!”
This child grew quite fond of us.
Being on his father’s side of more or
less Twat origin, he considered
himself a white man like ourselves,
and of all our guests he was perhaps
the only disinterested one, if we say
nothing about the sugar.
Amongst the Koyraberos, it is the
children, boys or girls, who are the
THE ARABU.
most attractive. The little negroes are
innocent enough up to twelve or
thirteen years old, and are often very
bright and intelligent. But when they reach the age at which they are
considered men and women, the indulgence of their passions
brutalizes the males, whilst the females are worn out by the number
of children they all have. The fatalism of the Mahommedans gives
them also something of the wan expression of oxen who expect they
know not what. I believe the negro race might be very greatly
improved by the careful selection of children before they are
subjected to evil influences. A careful education of such selected
boys and girls would, in the course of a few generations, result in the
growing up of useful citizens and intelligent workers for the common
good.
It may be that the decline in the intelligence of negroes is partly
the result of the way the children are carried about in infancy by their
mothers. They ride pig-a-back all day long, kept in place by a cotton
band fastened above the breasts of the mother, who takes no notice
of them even when they cry. The women do everything, wash, beat
the linen, cook and pound the grain, with their children tied to them in
this fashion. The head of the poor little one comes out above the
bandage, and is shaken and flung backwards and forwards at every
blow of the pestle. It really is very likely that this perpetual motion
injures the brain of the growing child, and accounts for the
degeneration of the race.
However that may be, the constant pressure on the breasts of the
mother leads to their rapid disfigurement; they look quite old before
they have reached middle life. Every one knows that negresses often
give the breast to their babies over their shoulders or even from
under the arm-pit.
So far the French have taken no steps for the effective occupation
of Say, and Amadu Cheiku has been undisputed master of the
country ever since the breaking at Sinder of the power of Madidu
over the Tuaregs. Dunga was the first place in which the Toucouleurs
settled for any time. After their exodus many circumstances
combined in favour of their chief. Driven from Sego, Nioro, and
Massina by the French, as a punishment for his many crimes and
treacheries, he took refuge at Duentza near Dori, but as, like a good
marabout, he tried (from religious motives of course) to poison the
chief and reign in his stead, he was expelled from the town and had
once more to flee for his life. Many of his people deserted him and
returned to Massina. Wandering as a fugitive from village to village
he passed his days begging from hut to hut, trying in vain to win
back the deserters.
The Toucouleurs found it difficult to get a living now, for no one
would treat them as marabouts any longer. The Fulahs of Torodi
refused to let them pass. Ibrahim Galadio, whose influence was
preponderant throughout the country, was not favourable to the
Toucouleurs, and they now took possession of Larba in independent
Songhay, but the Logomaten, or the Tuaregs of Bokar Wandieïdu,
defeated them with much bloodshed and took three hundred of them
prisoners.
The toils were closing in upon Amadu Cheiku, who, taught caution
by experience, expected to find the French skirmishers at his heels
before they were really there. Things did indeed look black for him,
when a saviour suddenly arose in the person of the chief of Say, who
had won back Galadio and Amiru of Torodi to the cause of the true
religion, and at the very time that he was signing a treaty with the
French, gave passage to Amadu, against whom he had been
pretending to need our help.
Amadu crossed the river, and was hospitably received by the
people of Djerma, who gave him the village of Dungu for himself and
his people.
Profiting by family quarrels, the wily chief soon became master,
and presently took possession of the big village of Karma, and it was
not until they were all taken prisoners, that the Djermankobes
discovered that they had been warming and feeding a serpent.
Now Amadu is once more a great marabout in right of his
inheritance from his father, El Hadj Omar. He is also a formidable
military chief, able to put five hundred guns into the field, for he has
that number of Toucouleur warriors under him. His word is
paramount from Sinder to Kibtachi. Unfortunate circumstances,
including the blood shed by the Christians, have won to his side the
whole of the Mussulman population, and besides his five hundred
guns, he can dispose of from ten to twenty thousand so-called
archers or men armed with spears.
His aim, or rather that of his principal adviser, Aliburi, who is really
the organizer of everything, seems to be to join hands on the one
side with Samory, and on the other with the Sultan of Sokoto, from
whom, however, he is divided by the Kebbi, Mauri, and Gober.
Moreover, Samory has a brother who was the leader of the column
which took to flight after the French success at Nioro. He will achieve
his ends unless we can prevent it, for his confederation is
strengthened by the fact that all are united in devotion to the
Mussulman faith, whilst the various native tribes combined against
him, though they are individually braver and stronger, have nothing
to bind them together or to lead them to act in concert.
If this union be brought about, the three great slave-dealers of
Western Africa—Samory, Amadu, and the Emir el Munemin of
Sokoto, will be combined against all comers, and we may expect to
see the complete depopulation of the Niger districts above Say.
Amadu has already begun his operations down-stream, where the
banks are deserted, the villages in ruins, and, where once the
Toucouleurs women came to draw water and to wash their clothes,
grow quantities of wild flowers and creepers.
Let us hope, however, that the recent occupation of Fandu, and
the French policy of establishing an effective protectorate over the
negro races may produce a salutary effect.[10]
The only man in a position to make head against Amadu was
Ibrahim Galadio, a stranger to the country, whose father had fled
there, chased from Massina by the Fulahs of Amadu, the great
founder of the ephemeral dynasty of Hamda-Allahi. Galadio has
guns, Galadio has a tata, he is as strong as the Toucouleurs, and no
one would be able to understand his rallying to the cause of Amadu
Cheiku, and submitting to him, if it were not for the prestige still
attached to the name of that chief’s father, El Hadj Omar. Yet the
former Sultan of Sego is, as every one knows, a Mussulman, with
neither faith nor belief in any law, stained with numerous crimes, a
traitor to his father, cursed even by him, cruel to his women, the
murderer of his brothers, avaricious in dealing with his sofas, and
above all the founder of a heresy.
The Torodi are hand and glove with the Tuaregs, and the people
of Say side with them, but the latter are not of much account as
warriors. Say is really nothing more than a hot-house for breeding
second-rate and intolerant marabouts. No tam-tams, no games are
allowed in it, and only on account of its past has it some little historic
importance.
A FEMALE TUAREG BLACKSMITH IN THE SERVICE OF
IBRAHIM GALADIO.

The Gaberos, the revolted vassals of the Awellimiden, are also on


Amadu’s side. They rallied round him voluntarily from the first, but
one day when they were beating their tabalas or war-drums, an
envoy from Dungu ran through the villages and staved in those
drums, which amongst negroes is considered the greatest insult.
With him went a herald shouting—“Henceforth there is no tabala in
the land, but that of Amadu Cheiku, the son of El Hadj Omar!”
At the invocation of that name so full of prestige, the Gaberos
bowed their heads, and very soon afterwards they had to pay taxes
like every one else.
The Sidibees soon joined them, for they and the Gaberos both
belong to the Fulah race.
Other tribes such as the Sillabees, like the Wagobes of Sinder
and the Sarracolais of the Senegal districts, had emigrated here,
after intestine quarrels with the Djanaru of Nioro, whilst the Kurteyes,
who are Fulahs of Massina, joined the Rimaibes or domestic slaves,
and the Bozos or emigrants from Fituka, in the time of the Ardos of
Massina under the last of the Askias.
This fact of their mixed origin will explain the courage of these
warrior tribes, for the Fulahs of pure descent are by no means
remarkable for bravery.
Even during our stay at Say, the Wagobés, the Kurteyes, and the
Sillabees were certainly on Amadu’s side, though their devotion was
rather lukewarm. Perhaps if they had known that we meant to stay in
the country, and had not been afraid of reprisals after we left, they
would have declared themselves on our side; in a lukewarm way of
course. It is in fact on these mixed tribes, which are neither entirely
Songhay nor Fulah, though they are all Mussulmans, that we shall
have to depend in our future occupation of the districts under notice.
In the present state of Say politics we must also take the Gurma,
the Fandu, and the Mossi people into account. They are all
heathens, but unfortunately the Mahommedan religion daily wins
recruits amongst these people, who were once devoted to fetichism
alone. True heathens, as heathens, are not worth much, for they are
cruel, addicted to drink, and credulous of the delusions their
sorcerers teach them; but they are worth a great deal more than the
Mussulmans, for fetichism may be improved upon and turned to
account, but you can do nothing with a Mahommedan.
The policy which ought to be followed in the districts round Say is
to oppose the marabout coalition which has rallied about Amadu,
with the fetich-worshipping people of Gurma and the lukewarm
Mussulmans of Dendi and Kebbi. They can be made a defence
against the intrusion of fanaticism and intolerance.
Having now, as I hope, given something of an idea of our
surroundings, let me relate how we passed the day at Fort Archinard.
At about half-past five in the morning, the one of us five whites
who happened to be on duty, shouted the order as if we were on
board ship, “Clear the decks!” There was rarely any delay in giving
that order, for it ended the watch for the night, and when one has
been walking the quarter-deck for some hours, one hastens to go
and get a little sleep before daybreak, for in these stifling nights the
only refreshing rest is that obtained in the early morning.
The coolies now lazily bestir themselves. Digui, who is the first to
get up, makes them put away their bedding and take down the
mosquito-nets, etc., shouting a kind of parody of orders on board
ship, “Roll up your kits, roll up your kits!” for they all love to fancy
themselves sailors, and are proud of the name.
Then when all are up and dressed, and everything is stowed
away, all turn towards the rising sun to perform their devotions, for
most of our men are Mussulmans. Some of them, who were but
lukewarm believers when in their homes on the Senegal, become
more and more devout the further they are from their country. Much
of it is mere show, of course. Others really have a kind of instinctive
religion, a sort of superstitious terror of the unseen—what may be
called the natural religion of fear. In every other respect however,
they are brave enough: we have had plenty of proof of that.
I must add here, however, that I have remarked rather a singular
fact, namely, that great religious zeal and endless prostrations, with
much posing and genuflexion, generally coincide with fits of
dishonesty, lying, and treacherous behaviour. One of our fellows,
who had hitherto been honest enough, took simultaneously to prayer
and pilfering our beads; and a man in whom I had before had great
confidence strutted about wearing strings of stolen property on his
neck and arms without any attempt at disguise. This put me on my
guard. Of course he had every reason to ask pardon of God for his
sins and to keep on muttering, “Astafar wallaye, astafar wallaye!—
Pardon, pardon!” At the same time he had taken to filching goods in
the market, an aggravating circumstance of this crime being that he
was trusted to look after our purchases.
There were of course some really devout Mahommedans
amongst our men. Samba Ahmady, our quarter-master, for instance,
always performed his devotions in private, and was a model of
probity. Digui too was a true believer, but perhaps I should say of him
that he was a philosopher rather than a blinded Mahommedan. He
knew how to return thanks to Allah without any ostentation when we
had safely got through some difficulty or danger, and whilst admitting
that there were such people as bad marabouts, he sometimes talked
in a manner alike naïve, touching, and elevated, of the dealings of
Providence with man, which is indeed rare, especially amongst
illiterate negroes.
Then Ahmady Mody, another trustworthy fellow, had a theory of
his own about salaams, and all that. I said to him one day, “Why
don’t you perform your salaam when the others do?”
“Commandant,” he replied, “I am too small; I will do it when I am
married.”
Well, the morning devotions over, we used to go to work, for there
was always something to do; the boats needed repair, or we had to
add to the tata, to unpack and repack the bales, send out parties to
cut wood or straw, and last, not least, to drill the men, and make
them practice shooting at a target. We used to hear our carpenter
Abdulaye singing as he conscientiously worked at oar-making, and
his song did not vary by an iota all the time we were at Say. It was a
very monotonous rhythm consisting of one word, Sam-ba-la-a-bé-é-
é-é-é-é-é-. Samba Laobé, be it understood, was one of the heroes of
the native resistance of the French in Cayor, and was killed in single
combat with Sub-Lieutenant Chauvey of the Spahis in 1886. I don’t
think Abdulaye knew more of the song about this Samba than the
word forming part of his name, and though it was a seditious
composition we could not be angry with him, as he evidently had not
the least idea what it all meant.
REPAIRING THE ‘AUBE.’

Abdulaye, who was a big, well-built Wolof, had but one ambition
during our stay at Fort Archinard, and that was to be allowed to go
and smash in the jaw of his fellow-countryman Aliburi, a native of his
own village. This Aliburi is a tool of Amadu, chief champion of the
war to the death with the French, so Abdulaye wishes to kill him if his
master is not to be got at. “Aliburi,” he would say, “is a bad Wolof.”
When the camp was cleaned and tidied up, the native traders,
male and female, came with their wares, for we had started a market
at Fort Archinard. When our occupation began, one of our chief fears
was that we should suffer from famine through Amadu’s declared
hostility to us. True, there was a village opposite to our camp, and if
the worst came to the worst, we could always make an armed
requisition in Say itself. But I was very averse to any such measures.
They would have been far too great a departure from the pacific
tactics we had so far pursued, and which were enjoined by our
instructions. I was anxious to preserve that attitude, and to carry out
my instructions to the letter. The people at Say seemed at the first
very unwilling to sell us anything. They, of course, ran considerable
risk of being robbed on their way to us, indeed this really did happen
more than once, and the chief of Say, though he did not forbid their
coming to our camp, did not encourage it, so that those who did
venture asked extortionate prices, thirty-five to forty cubits, or about
twenty-one yards of stuff for a sheep, for instance; but we were able
to buy good food for ourselves and our men, which was the most
important thing after all.
The first thing in the morning we used to see the native traders
squatting on the bank opposite Fort Archinard waiting for the little
barge worked by a few men, to go over and fetch them. Most of
these merchants I must add were women, and I really do think that
before they left Say they must have passed an examination in
ugliness, for I never saw such frights anywhere as our first lady
visitors here. As time goes on I know many discover something like
beauty in native women, and there are some who think them as
good-looking as their sisters of pale complexions. Even those who
do not exactly admire them are interested in them because they are
types of a race, but for all that, negresses, like English women when
they are ugly at all, are really revoltingly ugly.
OUR MARKET AT FORT ARCHINARD.

Well, ugly or not, our market-women soon set out their wares on a
kind of platform a little up-stream from the camp. The bugnul, or
negro trader, has his own particular mode of proceeding; he does not
expect to be spoken to, everything is done by gesture. The djula, or
merchant, crouches on the ground, with his wares spread out in front
of him. The buyer passes along, looks at the wares, and offers his
cowries or cloth in exchange. If the price is suitable the bargain is
concluded, if not the djula shakes his head, making a sign, signifying
“No,” and the would-be buyer goes away or squats down himself to
await his time. Sometimes the price is lowered, or the purchaser
adds a few cowries to his original offer. There is none of the noise
usual in European markets, none of the flow of language so
characteristic of them. Each party to a bargain tries to tire out the
other, but neither of them wastes any words.
MARKET AT FORT ARCHINARD.

The first price asked by a negro is never the same as that he


means to take. A reduction of at least half, sometimes much more, is
made.
Not knowing what attitude the Koyraberos might assume towards
us in the future, our first care on our arrival at the site of Fort
Archinard was to take advantage of their present good-will, and buy
in a good store of cereals and animals.
We soon made up our minds what prices we would give, for the
circumstances were exceptional, and we wanted rice or millet and
sheep enough to last us for three months. That once accomplished,
we could afford to think of economy and fix our own prices. The
currency employed was white cloth, and my private opinion is that
certain commercial arrangements were agreed upon amongst the
notables of Say, showing no mean intelligence on their part. They
meant to buy up all our merchandise, whether cloth, copper, or
beads.
This is what actually happened; as we only gave one or two cubits
of cloth for objects of little value, no real use could be made of them,
so they were sold again to speculators, who bought them at a very
low price from their needy owners, and then hid them away. Nothing
more was seen of them during our stay, but when we were gone they
meant to produce them, and ask extortionate prices for them.
Our average prices fluctuated in an extraordinary way. We
presently superseded Suleyman, who was too much of a talker, and
tried other men as buyers, but we really had not a single coolie who
was a good djula; at last in despair Baudry was obliged to take the
task upon himself, and every morning he went to market to lay in a
supply of provisions, buying grain and sheep, milk and butter. He
was probably the only buyer who took no perquisites for himself.
We got to know personally all the frightful negresses who served
us. We talked to them at first by signs, every one using a kind of
language of his own. Father Hacquart became very popular amongst
them, for he could speak the Arabic employed by the so-called
marabouts, and haggle in Songhay with the Koyraberos, whether
male or female. Some of the negresses hit upon a very clever
dodge, for instead of selling, they gave. They brought presents to the
Father, to the Commandant, and to the other officers, such various
gifts as calabashes of honey, eggs, milk, poultry, etc., but the
principle was always to give a little to receive much. Truth to tell, it is
very difficult to refuse to fall in with the idea when the presents are
offered in such an insinuating way.
A YOUNG GIRL OF SAY.

By these means we started a fine poultry farm, and our chickens


lived in the abattis of our enceinte. Their life was not altogether a
happy one at Fort Archinard; they became too familiar, and, poor
things, this cost them dear. Bluzet and I—this is a merciless age—
used to shoot at them from a little bow with arrows made of bits of
bamboo pointed with a pin, waging pitiless war on those who came
to drink at our well, or who dared to go so far as to disturb us when
we had gone to snatch a little rest and coolness in our huts.
We made rather an important discovery in connection with this
shooting of our poultry. Osman had secretly smuggled some
poisoned arrows into our camp, and we drove the point of one of
them into the head of a hen which had already been wounded by
Bluzet. The result was astonishing, for the next day the hen was
cured of her first hurt, and able to run about as if nothing had
happened.

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