580 Account of the Death of Mr. Mungo Park. [Nov. 



when they take a king, or a prince, or a man of high rank, they 

 keep him confined, and in the moon of fasting he is brought there, 

 and placed in a house appropriated for that purpose. He is then 

 killed there by cutting his throat, and there is not a moon of fast- 

 ing passed away, but there is always some one killed there. For 

 the space of one week after those executions, no body whatever is 

 allowed to pass before that house, named Cognoba, with shoes or 

 caps on j when the man is killed they let the blood be spilled 

 there, and then the body is carried into the open field, and left there 

 to the wild beasts. 



Departed early ; passed Segobougou, Segoucoura, Douabougou ; 

 arrived at about eight a. m. at Segochicosa, the residence of the 

 king of Bambana, named Dacha, on the Monday 1 1th of the 

 Moon. This town was built by his grandfather after his rebellion ; 

 who driving the king from his dominions he was proclaimed king 

 himself. Himself and his party were slaves, they rose in a mass, 

 got the better of their masters, drove them away : and this grand- 

 father of Dacha*, being the greatest warrior among them, was 

 proclaimed king (his name was Wollo). Lodged with Guiavi, one 

 of those attached to the king. Some one went in the evening to 

 let the king know of my arrival ; next morning the king got on 

 horseback, and said, 1 am going to Douabougou : tell Isaaco to 

 come there and meet me ; but the rain coming on he was obliged 

 to return back to his house. After the rain, he sent me word to 

 go to see him at his lodging, to bring along with me the hogs in 

 the same condition I had brought them, and in the way they were 

 tied for travelling. On my entrance in the first yard I met a guard 

 of forty men, young, strong, and without beard ; in another yard 

 saw a great many armed men under a shade. A little further on 

 found the king sitting, with four sabres fastened to his back, which 

 were given him by Mungo Park ; dressed in his military coat, 

 which he is obliged to wear when his army marches, and until it 

 returns, when he takes it off; at other times he dresses in blue or 

 white cotton or silk, and has great many gris gris, covered with 

 plates of gold and silver, sewed up all about his dress. I sat down 

 on one side of him and my landlord on the other side. After the 

 usual salutations I laid before him the drum, the two blunderbusses, 

 the bed, the one dog, (the other dog I forgot to mention ran away 

 from me after leaving Mariamcounda), the two hogs, the scarlet. 

 1 said to him, Maxwell, governor of Senegal, salutes you, and 

 gives his best compliments to you ; here is the present Manchong 

 your father asked of Mungo Park, ind which he promised to send 

 him : he asked me if the governor was well, 1 said, Yes, he is well, 

 and has desired me to beg you would give me your assistance in 

 my endeavours to go and see what has become of Mungo Park ; 

 and know positively whether he is dead or alive ; and give me a 

 vessel to facilitate me in my voyage, and the governor will reward 

 you for so doing. He said what does the governor mean to give 

 me ? I said, For giving me all the assistance you can, the governor 



