550 
APPENDIX VI. 
INFORMATION WITH REGARD TO THE PROVINCES 
OF GURMA, MO'SI, AND TOMBO. 
The whole triangle interposed between the Niger towards 
the north, and the country of the Eastern Mandingoes or 
Wangarawa towards the south, appears to be inhabited by a 
single race of people, whose language, although they are 
divided into several different states and nations, nevertheless 
appears originally to have been of the same stock. It is very 
probable, that this race in ancient times occupied the whole 
upper course of the Niger, and that this tract may have been 
wrested from them in later times by the Songhay,and the Man- 
dingoes, especially that section of the latter which is generally 
called Bambara. These are the Gurma towards the N. E., the 
Tombo towards the N. W., and between them the Mosi, or, 
as they appear to call themselves, More. Gurma, also, does not 
appear to be the indigenous name by which those people de- 
signate themselves, but is, I think, of Songhay origin. The 
Gurma, on account of the neighbourhood of the centres of the 
Songhay empire, appear to have lost almost their whole inde- 
pendence and nationality, the Songhay conquering from them 
great part of their territory, and wasting the remainder by 
continuous predatory expeditions; but the former seem to have 
recovered part of their strength since the weakening of the 
power of the Fulbe in these quarters, who followed upon the 
heels of the Songhay, and who appear to have formed settle- 
ments all along the great high road from Masina to Hausa, 
having established themselves firmly in the latter province 
from very remote times. The strongest among these pagan 
kingdoms five centuries ago, and even at the present moment, 
