After quitting the plantations, I came to a collection of villages, extending about three miles down the river.  Among these villages is one called “Goos” which is marked in the maps as the capital of Berber; but the residence of the Malek,[32] or chief of the eastern shore, is not at Goos, but at another of the collection, much larger, called Nousreddin, as I was informed, after the name of the present Malek, who resides there.  The houses of these villages, like the rest in the country of Berber, are built of clay, and roofed with unhewn timber, covered with trusses of straw; that of the Malek is like those of his people, only larger.  The western shore is governed by another Malek, whose village lies higher up the river than the emplacement of our camp.  The population of Nousreddin, and the villages adjoining, is considerable.  The country is fertile and well cultivated, and abounds in durra, cotton, barley, fine horses, camels, dromedaries, kine, sheep, goats and fowls, as does all the country of Berber.  I found in these villages some caravan merchants, who at present had nothing to sell but coarse cotton cloths.  These cotton cloths form the only clothing of the inhabitants; both men and women wear them, wrapped round their middle, with one end thrown over the shoulder or head.[33] The Berber, though resembling the fellah of Upper Egypt in complexion, is generally not so well formed in figure and feature.  Many of them have defective teeth, probably occasioned by the habit of chewing bad tobacco, (of which they have plenty,) which is common here.

The greater part of their household and field work is done by slaves they purchase from the caravans, coming either from Abyssinia or Darfour.  Some of the owners of female slaves would, for a dollar, without scruple, permit the soldiers of our camp to sleep with them.  The women of Berber, contrary to the custom in Egypt, go with the face unveiled, without embarrassment.  Both men and women never consider themselves in full dress, unless the hair of the head has been combed sleek, then braided and platted together, and afterwards plentifully anointed with butter.  They never cut the hair, I believe; it consequently forms an immense bunch behind the head, similar to that observable in some of the ancient statues of Egypt.[34] The barbarous practice of excision is universally performed upon all their females, whether free or slaves; as is the case also among all the tribes inhabiting the banks of the Nile above Assuan.

The people of Berber are, in their exterior deportment, mild and polite.  Every man we meet, uniformly gives us the greeting of peace, “Salaam aleikoum,” and uniformly shows a disposition to accommodate us in every thing reasonable.  This is probably owing to their being, in a very considerable degree, a commercial people; Berber being every year visited and traversed by numerous caravans from Abyssinia, Sennaar, Darfour, and Kordofan.