Gathering and collection of historical somali documents and photographs

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The New York Times, pg. 8
Nov 22, 1914

Jubaland Chiefs Send Plea to England to Join the Army
London, Nov. 10 – the London Times has received from a correspondent a copy of a petition signed by the principal Somali chiefs in Jubaland, asking that they be allowed to fight for

England. The document is as follows:
To His Highness the Governor,
Through the Hakim of Jubaland

Salaams, yea, many salaams, with God’s mercy, blessing, and peace. After Salaams,
We, the Somali of Jubaland, both Herti and Ogaden, comprising all the tribes and including the Maghaubul, but not including the [Tolomooge] Ogaden, who live in Biskaya and Tanaland and the Merehan, desire humbly to address you.

In former days the Somali have fought against the Government. Even lately the Marehan have fought against the Government. Now we have heard that the German Government have declared war on the English government. Behold, our "fitna" against the English Government is finished. As the Monsoon wind drives the sand hills of our coast into new forms, so does this this news of German evil-doing drive our hearts and spears into the service of the English Government. The Jubaland Somali are with the English Government. Daily in our mosques we pray for the success of the English armies. Day is as night and night is as day with us until we hear that the English are victorious. God knows the right. He will help the right. We have heard that the Indian Askaris have been sent to fight for us in Europe. Humbly we ask why should not the Somali fight for England also. We beg the Government to allow our warriors to show their loyalty. In former days the Somali tribes made fitna against each other. Even now it is so: it is our custom; yet with the Government against the Germans we are as one, ourselves, our warriors, our women, and our children. By God it is so.

A few days ago many troops of the military left this country to eat up the Germans who have invaded our country in Africa. May God prosper them. Yet, Oh Hakim, with all humbleness we desire to beg of the Government to allow our sons and warriors to take part in this great war against the German evildoer. They are ready. They are eager. Grant them the boon. God and Mohammed is with us all.

If Government wish to take away all the troops and police from Jubaland, it is good. We pledge ourselves to act as true Government askaries until they return. We humbly beg that this our letter may be place at the feet of our King and Emperor, who lives in England, in token of our loyalty and our prayers.
(Doubt)
 
THE UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE COLONIES (LORD EMMOTT)
My Lords, I am quite sure that your Lordships will agree with the noble Earl opposite that no apology is needed for introducing Somaliland once more as a subject for consideration in your Lordships' House. For many years the question of our policy there has been an extremely difficult one. I must confess that I do not agree with some of the rather extravagant language that the noble Earl has used about the policy of His Majesty's Government. I do not want to treat this matter any more than I can help as a Party question. If I did want so to treat it, I might refer to what was done by the late Government in years gone by. But what I feel very strongly about the question is that as regards Somaliland neither Party is precisely in a position to throw stones at the other. Both Parties have set up policies which they have at any rate altered. I agree entirely that the position is a difficult one to-day, and I shall, before I sit down, explain to your Lordships why His Majesty's Government have altered their policy recently and what they propose to do. The noble Earl stated frankly that he is not himself very fully acquainted with the question of Somaliland, and apparently he does not know that the Italians do not profess to administer their northern portion of Somaliland at all, and I gather from what he has said that he knows pretty well in how disturbed a state Abyssinian Somaliland is. The noble Earl spoke of a criticism made by my right hon. friend Colonel Seely in another place some years ago as to the policy of keeping garrisons at internal situations in Somaliland. But what Colonel Seely was referring to at that time was an immobile garrison of 200 or 300 men. That is not the present policy of His Majesty's Government.

The noble Earl said a great deal about the treaties that have been made with the tribes. Of course, those treaties do not cover the whole of Somaliland. They apply much more to the western portion than to the eastern. There were, as far as I remember, six treaties made altogether, and in four of those treaties the gracious favour and protection of Her Majesty was granted to the tribes........... But the difficulty in Somaliland does not lie so much owing to the treaties we have made. It lies rather in the moral obligations which rest upon us with reference to tribes like the Dolbahanta, with whom I think I am correct in saying we have no treaty at all
@Darwiish97
 
British Somaliland

Ralph Evelyn Drake-Brockman -

Seventeen trips through Somaliland and a visit to Abyssinia: with supplementary preface on the 'Mad Mullah' risings

Harald George Carlos Swayne
R. Ward, Limited, 1903 - 385

The Mad Mullah of Somaliland

By dauglas jardine


Richard Corfield of Somaliland


Henry Francis Prevost Battersby
By
E. Arnold, 1914 - 259


Official history of the operations in Somaliland, 1901-04, Volume 1

Printed for H. M. Stationery office by Harrison and sons, 1907
 
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(Cali qaaje(aden madobe) frees mullah from aden prison 1897?)
Salaan carabey gabay
Dhallintaanu seeraha lahayn, suxubadii Baashe
Samaw ina Carraaliyo raggaad, saa ugaranayso
Xasankii sadriga igaga yiil, seedihiyo laabta
Sucdigiyo ayaankuba horuu, saamigaw dhacaye
Sikhinimada Cali Qaajihii, sad iyo maadh taabay
Siciidkii aan cidi loodin jirin, seeyo dirirteeda
Saldhiggiisa gabay meel hadduu, sin u abbaaraayo
Sinjigu waa cajabe, Cabdaan lagaga siiyeene
Sur madheedhlayaashaa kiciyo, samay intii qaaday
Safkii ina Buraaliyo lahaa, Suudi iyo Baashe
Sarkaalkii magaalada kuwaan, sacabka leefsiiyay
Iyagaba salaan uma lahaan salaw la’aaneede.
 
THE UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE COLONIES (LORD EMMOTT)
My Lords, I am quite sure that your Lordships will agree with the noble Earl opposite that no apology is needed for introducing Somaliland once more as a subject for consideration in your Lordships' House. For many years the question of our policy there has been an extremely difficult one. I must confess that I do not agree with some of the rather extravagant language that the noble Earl has used about the policy of His Majesty's Government. I do not want to treat this matter any more than I can help as a Party question. If I did want so to treat it, I might refer to what was done by the late Government in years gone by. But what I feel very strongly about the question is that as regards Somaliland neither Party is precisely in a position to throw stones at the other. Both Parties have set up policies which they have at any rate altered. I agree entirely that the position is a difficult one to-day, and I shall, before I sit down, explain to your Lordships why His Majesty's Government have altered their policy recently and what they propose to do. The noble Earl stated frankly that he is not himself very fully acquainted with the question of Somaliland, and apparently he does not know that the Italians do not profess to administer their northern portion of Somaliland at all, and I gather from what he has said that he knows pretty well in how disturbed a state Abyssinian Somaliland is. The noble Earl spoke of a criticism made by my right hon. friend Colonel Seely in another place some years ago as to the policy of keeping garrisons at internal situations in Somaliland. But what Colonel Seely was referring to at that time was an immobile garrison of 200 or 300 men. That is not the present policy of His Majesty's Government.

The noble Earl said a great deal about the treaties that have been made with the tribes. Of course, those treaties do not cover the whole of Somaliland. They apply much more to the western portion than to the eastern. There were, as far as I remember, six treaties made altogether, and in four of those treaties the gracious favour and protection of Her Majesty was granted to the tribes........... But the difficulty in Somaliland does not lie so much owing to the treaties we have made. It lies rather in the moral obligations which rest upon us with reference to tribes like the Dolbahanta, with whom I think I am correct in saying we have no treaty at all
@Darwiish97
All the northern clans both dir and darod signed those treaties except for dhulbahante who staunchly opposed the colonial expansion we didn’t tolerate this and kept the resistance going almost another 20 years after these treaties were signed and with the fall of the Dervish state we were just forcefully annexed into the Sland protectorate
From a legal perspective this is why sland can not logically historically and legally claim Dhulbahante clan territory as part of their breakaway state premised on the former British borders, because we as a clan did not sign any treaty to join our lands were annexed en after the defeat of the Dervish state so in theory although the Sland independence and voluntary union story kind of makes sense (saying they were their own sovereign country for a few days before joining the union of Somalia), it doesn’t include our clan lands even going by the latter Sland argument
 
I hope no one objects if I post these again.

Jilib in 1966
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    Main street. Minaret of the mosque is on the left. At the end of the street is the Italian administration building for the Lower Jubba. The DC's office is on the left and the post office on the right. The road jags to the right.

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    The Jubba.

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    Jilib from the west.

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    The Italian-built Government School. The police station is in th background.

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    The other two teachers are at the left.

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  7. My first home was in the compound of the wife of the Mayor, Mahammad Sheck Suleyman. It was cramped, airless and heavily infested with mosquitoes; but the people were nice and understood when I decided to move.

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    The lady was Eileen Barthold, visiting from Jamaame.

  8. The alley behind the houses.
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    John Johnson, Heelo, of Indiana state is on the left. He worked with Musse Galaal and established the Somali collection at Indiana State. That is me, scratching my leg, in the middle. Sid Ali is on the right. He was director of the Agraria, paid most of the government salaries in the Lower Jubba, and was my second landlord. The boat and cable was how we got across the river to the Agraria and the Leprosarium. During late Jilaal it was possible to drive across the river at this spot.

    Sid Ali visited me here in California during the summer of 1969.

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    Building my arish. The Landrover belonged to Sid Ali. The smaller building is the kitchen and muskuul. I had a cement floor and big windows I could open. I bought water in fustos during the wet seasons but had to get water in drums from deep wells during the dry. Any cut of meat was a shilling a kilo. Eggs were kumi-kumi, the big Italian ones kumi-tano.
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    Above:

    My best friend, Abdi Salad Sugulle, Dheere. He was "Secretary" to the Russian Project west of Jilib and an English speaker. He told me the Russian director of the project was "also a nice guy." I have put out the word for years trying to find him, but now fear he died at Gezira Beach. Aun. He was Cumar Maxamuud.

    Below:

    This was about as formal as it got in Jilib. Caday Cumar is wearing toob Banadiir. It was considered patriotic, but was too expensive for most folks and not for everyday. She was a nurse and a wealthy lady in the camel trade.

    Sid Ali was director of the Agraria and in charge of most national agricultural efforts in the Lower Jubba, including well digging and animal vaccinations. (Jilib had been the Italian administrative center for the Lower Jubba, which then included much of what is now Middle Jubba, and functioned that way in the 1960s. It was a big deal.) He was part of an agricultural observation and study group that toured the US in the summer of 1969 and we were able to have a nice visit. The mail stopped shortly after the Kacaan.

    They are both gone, AUN, but their compound is still in the family.

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    ======================================================================


    I have other photos, but they do not relate directly to Jilib. I will save them for another thread and another day.
 
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