4 Journey of a Mahomedan Priest 
After having traversed this desert, which occupied eleven 
days, and having skirted the northern boundaries of Dar Fur, 
he found himself at Noomdroo, the most eastern town of Wadda, 
or Dar Bergoo; in fifteen days more, pursuing a direction to 
the N.W. he arrived at Warra, the capital of that country. 
This is a very powerful kingdom, and of much greater extent 
from east to west than is generally represented in the maps; 
the sovereignty is held by Saboo, a prince of unlimited autho- 
rity, who occasionally sends. large armies into the field, but 
seldom accompanies them himself; his troops are not furnished 
with fire-arms, but they maintain desperate conflicts with the 
spear, an instrument which they direct with much precision, 
and handle with great dexterity : many of the natives of Wadda 
are great travellers, and trade to countries far distant; their 
beasts of burthen, like as in most of the sandy districts of Africa, 
is the camel. From Warra proceeding to the northward of 
west, in two days he fellin with Fitrée Alfitree or Belala, 
situated on the large lake of that name; this lake receives the 
contents of a large river (perhaps the Gir of Ptolemy, the Baher 
el Miselad of Browne) which rising among some small moun- 
tains or hills on the confines of Kordofan, flows to the westward 
through Dar Fur, and afterwards in a north-westerly direc- 
tion till it reaches its termination where its breadth is about 
four hundred yards. Mahomed has made the circuit of lake 
Fitu, and positively declares, that it has no outlet; this stub- 
born fact, may (with the sequel of his route, which is perfectly 
consistent, and shews that he crossed no river of any magnitude 
between Fitri and Nufi) prove a serious objection to the con- 
tinuation of the Gir, which has been lately supposed to flow from 
Lake Fitri, and after traversing an immense extent of country, 
to unite with the Niger, and thus account for the quantity of 
rain-water, which finds its way to the Bight of Benin through 
the broad channels of its numerous rivers. The soil around 
Lake Fitri during the dry season is soft and slimy, owing to the 
retiring of the water, and at this time, myriads of musquitoes 
‘are engendered, which cause a visit to its banks to be very dis- 
agreeable. The natives of the country are Mahomedans, carry 
