NIGRITIA. 



839 



of a wide spreading acacia. The Bornou troops remained quite steady, without noise or con- 

 fusion ; and a few horsemen who were moving about in the front giving directions, were the 

 only persons out of tlie ranks. On the Arabs appearing in sight, a shout or yell was given by 

 the sheik's people which rent the air ; a blast was blown from their rude instruments of music 

 equally loud, and they moved on to meet Boo Khaloom and his Arabs. There was an ap- 

 pearance of tact and management in their movements which astonished me ; three separate 

 small bodies from the centre and each flank kept changing rapidly towards us, to within a few 

 feet of our horses' heads, without checking the speed of their own, until the moment of their 

 halt, while the whole body moved onwards. These parties were mounted on small, but very 

 perfect horses, who stopped and wheeled from their utmost speed, with great precision and 

 exactness." 



9. Bcgharmi. This is a large and fertile region, lying between Darfoor on the east, and 

 Bornou on the north. On the north it is bounded by deserts of dry sand, which in the spring 

 are frequented by herdsmen. On the south are niany black tribes. The inhabitants of this 

 country have long maintained a fierce war with Bornou. 



10. JMandara. This district lies south of Bornou. The sultan resides at J\Iora, 180 

 miles from Kouka. Major Denham passed 



through a town in this country called Dee- 

 goa, with 30,000 inhabitants. The moun- 

 tains here furnish abundance of iron. The 

 principal towns are 8 in number, and all 

 stand in a valley. The accompanying repre- 

 sentation of the sultan of Mandara and his 

 principal officers, was drawn by the British 

 travelers. 



11. Loggun. This country was discov- 

 ered by Dr. Oudeney and his companions. 

 It lies upon the Shary, a river flowing into 

 Lake Tchad, and which these travelers 

 traced above 40 miles, and found it to be 

 half a mile broad. Amid tiie furious war- 

 fare of the surrounding states, the inhabit- 

 ants of this country have steadily cultivated 

 peace. Tbey are industrious, and work steadily at the loom. Their cloth is steeped thrice 

 in a dye of indigo, and laid upon the trunk of a tree, and beaten with wooden mallets till it 

 acquires a most brilliant gloss. They have a coin of iron. The people are remarkably 

 handsome and healthy. 



12. Fellatah Kingdom. This territory lies west of Bornou, and comprises Houssa, Zeg- 

 zeg, Kano, Cashna, and other districts more or less in subjection to the Fellatahs, a warlike 

 and predatory nation. The country is watered by the Yeou. Kano., in a highly cultivated 

 and populous district, contains from 30,000 to 40,000 inhabitants, of whom a great proportion 

 are slaves ; it is famed all over Central Africa for dyeing cloth, and it is the commercial em- 

 porium of Central Africa. The negroes here are exceedingly polite and ceremonious- The 

 district of Cashna is separated from Kano by a stream flowing to the west ; its capital is noted 

 for its fairs, which make it a commercial entrepot between Egypt and Fezzan, and Southern 

 Nigritia ; the chief articles of trade are slaves and salt. 



The city of Soccatoo., the capital of the Fellatah dominions, stands on the river, dividing 

 Cashna from Kano, and is thus described by Clapperton. " It occupies a long ridge which 

 slopes gently toward the north, and appeared to me the most populous town I had visited in 

 the interior of Africa, for unlike most other towns in Houssa, where the houses are thiniy 

 scattered, it is laid out in regular, well-built streets. The houses approach close to the walls, 

 which were built by the present sultan in 181S, the old walls being too confined for the in- 

 creasing population. The wall is between 20 and 30 feet high, and has 12 gates, which are 

 regularly closed at sunset. There are two large mosques, besides several other places for 

 prayer. There is a spacious market-place in the centre of the city, and another large square in 

 front of the sultan's residence. The dwellings of the principal people are surrounded by high 

 walls, which inclose numerous coozes, and flat-roofed houses, built in the Moorish style, whose 

 large water-spouts of baked clay, projecting from the caves, resemble a tier of guns. The 



The Sultan of Mandara and his principal officers. 



