Chap. XLIL 
COTTON PLANTATIONS. 
143 
I roved about in this wild and fertile region till I 
was entirely hemmed in by an impenetrable thicket. 
While returning hence to our encampment by a more 
westerly path, I was ruminating in my mind how the 
former rulers of this country had evinced so much 
more feeling for the bounty and beauty of nature 
than its present possessors ; for while these have 
chosen for their residence the most monotonous dis- 
trict of the empire, the former selected those parts 
which nature itself had embellished — the shores of the 
so-called Yeou, or the komadugu Waube, and this 
fine watercourse of Dikowa ; and they not only chose 
the most interesting spots, but they even embellished 
them by art, as the large artificial basins in the 
neighbourhood of Ghasreggomo, Ghambaru, and Da- 
masak amply testify. In this respect it is not un- 
interesting that we are informed by the imam A'hmed, 
the historian of the king Edris Alawoma, that his 
master, when he visited the town of Ffka, could not 
forego the pleasure of paying a visit to the famous 
little alpine lake which lies at some distance from 
that town. Although the country of Bornu is far 
from being the most favoured part of Negroland, yet 
the shores of these watercourses are very rich indeed, 
and capable of maintaining a numerous population. 
In returning to our encampment, I passed the mar- 
ket or durriya, which was held every afternoon on 
the west side of the encampment. It was really a 
busy scene, not yielding in importance to the little 
daily market of the capital ; and this was not at all 
