594 
APPENDIX IX. 
Songbay. 
A.D. 
A.H. 
Neighbouring Kingdoms. 
face of this part of Africa by 
prostrating the kingdom of Melle. 
Invited by 'Omar, the Tumbutu-koy, 
Sonni AK marches against Tim- 
buktu, which had never before be- 
longed to Songhay Proper. While 
his horsemen appear on the south 
side of the river, A'kil makes his 
escape towards Biru or Walata. 
Sonni 'All then, instead of attack- 
ing immediately the town of Tim- 
buktu, went first to El Hodh, the 
south-western province of Walata. 
Having thence returned to Tim- 
buktu, from whence 'Omar also, 
the Tumbutu-koy, had meanwhile 
fled to Biru*, he ransacked and 
plundered the town, and made a 
terrible havoc amongst its inhabit- 
ants, even surpassing that which 
took place on the occasion of the 
pagan king of Moshi conquering the 
town. Sonni 'AH seems especially 
to have exercised some cruelty 
against the learned men. But, 
notwithstanding, the town seems 
soon to have recovered from this 
blow, for it was in the latter part of 
this century that it became more 
densely inhabited than before. But 
the reason was that, in consequence 
of the conquests of Sonni 'All, the 
Arab merchants from the north 
broke off their traffic with Ghanata 
or Walata (Biru), and instead 
began to visit the markets of Tim- 
buktu and Gogo. 
Sonni 'AH conquered Baghena, that 
is, the centre or original part of the 
ancient kingdom of Ghanata and 
the later Walata, but satisfied him- 
self with making the chief of that 
country his tributary. Sonni 'All 
then made Jinni likewise tribu- 
tary, which place had not been con- 
1468-9 
873 
Walata or Biru becomes insig- 
nificant, all the merchants 
emigrating to Timbuktu and 
Gogd. 
* From A'hmed Baba we learn nothing more respecting the fate of 'Omar ; but we see in another passage that 
Sonni 'Ah imprisoned Al Mukhtar, another son of Mohammed Nasr, who, from what follows, it is evident, was 
Tumbutu-koy. 
