258 
TRAVELS IN AFRICA. 
Chap. XLV. 
On our re-entering the capital there was 
February 1st. ° A 
a good deal of ceremony and etiquette 
observed, when the whole army *, at least that part 
which had not yet been disbanded, was formed into 
one compact line of battle , in order to receive in a 
suitable manner the military salutes which were paid 
to the commander-in-chief on his successful return. 
Distinguished above all those who came to meet us 
and pay their compliments to the commander, was 
Ghet, the chief of the Welad Sliman, who, a few days 
previously, had arrived from Kanem, where we left him, 
and from whence he had made a successful expedition 
against the Kiinkuna in Karka. Galloping up with 
the utmost speed, at the head of his little band of from 
twenty to thirty horsemen clad in their picturesque 
attire, this petty Arab chief exhibited an interesting 
and animated specimen of horsemanship, which pre- 
sented a remarkable contrast to the unwieldy move- 
ments of the clumsy and sluggish figures of the 
negroes. Returning to our old quarters in the town, 
we were treated with a peculiar dainty of the Kanuri, 
consisting of the fresh seeds of the grain called masr 
(Zea ma'is), which are roasted in a peculiar way. 
Thus ended this expedition, which opened to us a 
slight glimpse into the richly-watered zone of the 
equatorial regions, which had been supposed to form 
an insurmountable barrier of a high mountain-chain, 
and brought us into contact with tribes, whose cha- 
* For a list of the several detachments which constituted the 
army, at least the cavalry, on this expedition, see Appendix III. 
