410 ZERIBAS IN THE PROVINCE OF ROL. 



nothing is left but the cultivation of corn, which, besides serving 

 as food, has to furnish the material from which to distil brandy, 

 which practice has unfortunately taken root and is in full swing 

 among the natives. 



It might have been supposed that, in order to secure for 

 the Danagla a comfortable existence, at the expense of the in- 

 habitants, the latter (the producers) would at least have been left 

 in peace. Far from it. During the first two days of my stay 

 here, the Negro chiefs, living in the immediate neighbour- 

 hood, complained to me that some of their people — mostly 

 women and girls — had been stolen to the number of two 

 hundred and forty. These figures do not include the numerous 

 Monbuttu, eighty-five of whom (mostly girls) claimed and 

 received their freedom on ■ the day of my arrival ; and about 

 two hundred slaves belonging to other tribes, who at once 

 returned to their relatives. In the course of a few days the 

 number of Monbuttu who were set at liberty, and at once sent 

 home to Makraka, amounted to two hundred and one. Not- 

 withstanding all this, greater surprises awaited me. I received 

 a report from the Monbuttu people in Makraka, that a falcl, 

 residing there, Mohammed Salih of Bornu, who had been 

 imprisoned for slave-dealing in Gordon's time, but soon set at 

 liberty, had gone to Monbuttu, and with the help of an escort 

 of six armed slaves, had taken away twenty-six persons, and 

 brought them to Makraka. The faki and his prey were very 

 soon brought before me ; there were nineteen young boys, five 

 girls, and two children of four to six years of age. My ex- 

 amination proved that the faki had gone by unfrequented 

 paths from village to village, and had obtained these twenty- 

 six individuals, partly by false representations, partly by open 

 violence. Of course it did not occur to the governor of the 

 district, Eakhit Bey, who happened to be at the time at 

 Kabayendi, to imprison this man-hunter, although he had him 

 brought before him, and reprimanded him for coming into the 

 station by night ! ! And I am expected to perform wonders 

 with such officials ! Naturally, I at once took precautions to 

 render the recurrence of such an affair impossible. 



The station of Bufi being very remote, my visit was wholly 

 unexpected, and therefore occasioned quite a panic. Nobody 



