168 
TRAVELS IN AFRICA. 
Chap. LVII. 
tivation, formed a special object of attraction to me. 
For it was the first time during my travels in Negro- 
land that I had seen rice cultivated on a large scale ; 
and as we were winding along the foot of the rocky 
hills to the south-east, crossing the various small 
channels which descend from them and afterwards 
join the greater rivulet which we saw at some distance 
on our right, the country became dotted with small 
villages, or "rugga," as they are called by the Fiilbe, 
some of them of historical renown, such as Daghel or 
Daggel, the village where 'Othman the Reformer had 
his usual residence before he rose to that great politi- 
cal importance which he attained in after times. But 
such is the degraded state of these conquerors at the 
present time, that even this village, which, if they had 
the slightest ambition or feeling of national honour, 
ought to be a memorable and venerable place to them 
for all ages, has been ransacked by the G6berawa, and 
lies almost deserted. 
It is at Daghel that the valley attains its greatest 
breadth ; but as we advanced, in a south-westerly 
direction, it was narrower, till, at the village called 
Gida-n-manomi, it became greatly contracted, shortly 
after which, the river turning away to a greater dis- 
tance, the path ascended the rocks. It is the same 
path along which Clapperton, on his second journey, 
went so repeatedly from Sokoto to Magariya, but 
which, from the scanty information obtained from 
his papers in this respect, has been laid down so 
very erroneously. In general, I cannot praise too 
