158 CAPTAIN TUCKEY’S NARRATIVE. 
substitutes for glass bottles, or earthen mugs. The women 
too approach nearer to a state of nudity ; their sole clothing 
being a narrow apron (the breadth of the hand and 18 
inches long) before and behind, so that the hips on each 
side are uncovered. From every town near to which we passed 
they flocked out to look at the white men, (moudele ) and 
without any marks of timidity came and shook hands with 
us. To the best looking and the best drest I distributed some 
beads. ‘The price paid here, by a native, for a wife of the 
first class, the Chenoo’s daughter for instance, is four pieces 
of baft, one piece of guinea, and a certain quantity of palm 
wine. We in no instance since we left Embomma found 
the men allant en avant in their offer of their women; but 
this our Bomma men told us was from their little intercourse 
with Europeans, for that any of them would think himself 
honoured by surrendering his wife or daughter to a white 
man. 
The population seems to be extremely thin, and (leaving 
out the insignificant number of fishermen who remain on the 
rocks at the river side) is collected into banzas and gentle- 
mens’ towns; the largest of the former (Cooloo) does not 
contain above 300 souls, of whom two-thirds are women and 
children. 'The extent of fertile land is, however, capable, 
with very moderate industry, of supporting a great increase 
