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	To the Heart of the Nile: Lady Florence Baker and the Exploration of Central Africa By: Shipman, Pat Published By: HarperCollins ePub for Digital Editions Price: $11.99 PDF for Digital Editions Price: $11.99 Mobipocket Reader Price: $11.99 Microsoft Reader Price: $11.99 PDF for Digital EditionsePub for Digital EditionsMobipocket ReaderMicrosoft Reader	EBOOK OPTIONS ADD TO CART ADD TO WISHLIST TELL A FRIEND RECEIVE ALERTS
	In 1859, at age fourteen, Florence Szász stood before a room full of men and waited to be auctioned to the highest bidder. But slavery and submission were not to be her destiny: Sam Baker, a wealthy English gentleman and eminent adventurer, was moved by compassion and an immediate, overpowering empathy for the young woman, and braved extraordinary perils to help her escape. Together, Florence and Sam -- whose love would remain passionate and constant throughout their lives -- forged into literally uncharted territory in a glorious attempt to unravel a mysterious and magnificent enigma called Africa. A stunning achievement, To the Heart of the Nile is an unforgettable portrait of an unforgettable woman: a story of discovery, bravery, determination, and love, meticulously reconstructed through journals, documents, and private papers, and told in the inimitable narrative style that has already won Pat Shipman resounding international acclaim.

Excerpt

Chapter One

I Am Not A Slave

The nubile girls would be sold in January 1859. It was

the wish of the matriarch of the Finjanjian family,

Finjanjian Hanim. She was one of Viddin's top licensed

dealers in white slaves and prided herself on her merchandise.

Finjanjian Hanim had an uncanny ability to spot a

promising girl at a very early age, train her for the harem,

and then sell her at puberty for a top price.

Admittedly, Viddin was not the site of a major trade in

white slaves, even within the Ottoman Empire in Europe.

Men who were sent to Viddin as pasha, or governor, were

being punished for some misdeed. The hanim had not the

stature of the members of the Slave Traders Guild in Constantinople

or Cairo, who might manage to place a girl in

the Imperial Harem. Viddin had no equivalent of the incredible

Topkapi Palace with its extensive harem. However,

Finjanjian Hanim had succeeded in producing some girls of

excellent quality who had gone into large and prestigious

harems, enhancing the wealth and social standing of the

Finjanjian family. They had climbed far from the days when

they were simple porcelain sellers, the trade that gave them

their family name.

January was the usual time for selling the most attractive girls, and the

hanim now had a girl of exceptional quality to sell: Florenz. A young blond

beauty, Florenz had been raised and trained most carefully for ten years.

She took lessons in mathematics, reading and writing, geography, music,

and all the womanly arts alongside the hanim's own granddaughters in the

harem. Finjanjian Hanim had taken great care to see that Florenz retained

her knowledge of Hungarian and German, the languages of her natal

family, as well as learning Arabic, the lingua franca of the harem. Knowing

European languages was a highly prized accomplishment in girls these

days. Watching the girl with a critical eye in the hamman, the baths, the

hanim was sure Florenz had reached puberty and the height of her attractiveness.

It was time for her to put on the veil in public.

Another year might put a fuller bosom and a more womanly shape

on the girl, but Finjanjian Hanim had another reason for deciding to sell

Florenz now. A new immigration law had been passed in Constantinople,

which offered highly favorable terms to those who would immigrate to

the Ottoman Empire. As long as the immigrants pledged their loyalty to

the empire, they would even be permitted to practice their own religions

freely. Finjanjian Hanim feared that this opportunity would tempt a flood

of immigrants from Circassia and Georgia, where ethnic Russians were

harassing the natives and trying to drive them out.

As concubines, Circassian and Georgian girls were always much sought

after because of their fair coloring and beauty. Sometimes they were kidnapped

for the harem trade, abducted in raids, or taken as trophies of war.

Circassian or Georgian girls were also sold by their parents, which carried

no dishonor. A life in the harem was much easier and more luxurious than

the ceaseless work that awaited girls as the wives of poor farmers. And

if such families came into the province in numbers, what better way was

there for them to raise cash for a new start than to offer a fair daughter to

a slave trader? The market in white slave girls could be ruined by an influx

of Circassians and Georgians; better to sell Florenz now than wait.

She notified the other members of the Slave Traders Guild first of all,

in case they wanted to enter girls of their own into the sale. A number of

girls of lesser quality would fatten the audience and make Florenz look

better by comparison. Discreet notices were placed in the newspapers in

Constantinople, Sofia, Viddin, and Vienna. Brochures were sent to potential buyers, and gossip carried the news farther into Europe. Finjanjian

Hanim fantasized happily about the possible attendees and the money she

would make.

As the mother of the master of the household, Finjanjian Hanim ruled

over the haremlik, the secluded part of the house where all the women

and children lived in cloistered isolation. Her title in the harem was Sultana

Validé, and she was esteemed more highly than anyone else, even

the master's first wife. A favorite Turkish proverb said "A man has but

one mother but might have many wives." She decided who would be sold

and when. She decided who lived where in the haremlik and who got an

extra supplement to her pasmalik, or "slipper money." Now she thought

that Florenz should be allowed the great privilege of new and expensive

clothes for the auction.

Florenz did not know why she was being so favored, but some of the

other girls of the harem were given clothes too. Her friend, the Sultana

Validé's granddaughter, had been given beautiful new garments only a few

weeks earlier before she received a visit from a goruçu, one of the older

women who acted as marriage brokers. Florenz wondered if she too

would soon receive a visit from a goruçu. She did not much like the idea,

but she had to marry, she supposed, and that was how it was done. Her

only hope was that the husband the Finjanjians found for her would be a

kind and lovable man. The Sultana Validé, a woman of some perception,

never mentioned the upcoming sale to Florenz, thinking the girl might

make trouble.

As soon as the date of the sale was announced, the kitchen slaves began

working extra hours, preparing pastries and other delicacies, squeezing

fruits for juice and sherbet concoctions. The finest coffee sets were taken

out of storage and cleaned meticulously, the supply of delicately embroidered

silk napkins refreshed. Silver utensils were polished to a high shine.

Musicians practiced frantically, as they would be stationed discreetly in

the main reception room of the selamlik, the public area of the household

where men might go, to fill the room with music ...

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