Chapter Three: Children of Muhammad [Ibah] 75 in the Sahel region under our authority, they had to be on good terms with us, even though they did not forgive us for obliging them to pay the tax we imposed on caravans and herds entering or leaving the region. In October 1893, they plundered the herds of the villages north of Kengni. Weeks later, Lieutenant Martelly confiscated one of their herds as punishment, and a number of them were taken as hostages in Koumbi. Since then, the French authorities have been awaiting offers from the tribal chief to negotiate with him. In May 1894, Ali bin Jed sent delegates to the leader of the Machzouf, Sheikh Ibn Ahmed Mahmoud bin Al-Muhaymid, and offered him an offensive and defensive alliance against us. However, the Mukhtar Sheikh strongly refused. This response temporarily calmed their fighting spirit, and over the course of a year, Ali bin Jed showed good intentions towards us. As we suspected, his stance was purely a facade, as the Koumbi authorities severely reprimanded him shortly thereafter due to the escape of one of the [previously mentioned] hostages. The supervisor refused to hand him over, and a fine of 50 sheep was imposed on the mentioned sub-tribe. Later, Ali bin Jed was surprised to find himself socially entangled with the Kalansar and Awlad Aloush tribes, whose leaders, Muhammad Ankonou and Sheikh Ben Sidi, were in full rebellion against us (Spring 1896). The Machzouf campaigns brought a swift end to these negotiations, and Ali bin Jed, exhausted by the threat of invasion and losses, hastily returned to pledge his allegiance in Koumbi in 1898, and then in Oro in 1899. This leader, until the end of his reign, showed a certain disregard for some of the animosity, not revealing a significant tendency to mock. This was particularly evident among the Lahmanat and Kinta tribes. Even in the year of his death, 1908, the Fakhd of Al-Zamarigh and Al-Darakla plundered the inhabitants of Akur, including some of the camps of the Children of Muhammad themselves. The Mukhtar bin Muhammad [Ibn Al-Shin] {12}, his cousin, was appointed as his successor. However, he did not hold leadership for more than two years, as he died while his brother Abd al-Rahman was carrying him on March 20, 1911. Abd al-Rahman bin Muhammad bin Ahmed bin Al-Shin, born around 1862, was a leader of the "old school," but a kind and gentle man who liked to do good. Something could be gained from him for the benefit of this tribe, which appears to be one of the most backward in the Sahel region. Even before he assumed leadership, and before our effective control over the tribe's grazing lands, he maintained excellent relations with the Koumbi center. He has four sons: Muhammad, nicknamed "Kwad," born around 1892, is an open-minded young man representing the new generation.