450 
TRAVELS m AFRICA. 
Chap. LI. 
With regard to the special features of the country, 
and the topography of the towns and villages, they 
will be described in a separate chapter* ; here I will 
only say that the entire population of the country 
seems scarcely to exceed a million and a half, and 
the whole military force, in the present reduced state 
of the kingdom, can hardly be more than 3000 
horse, and 10,000 foot, including the Shiiwa popu- 
lation, who surpass the black natives in breeding 
horses, while the cavalry of Waday may be most 
correctly estimated at from 5000 to 6000, and that 
of Dar-Fur at more than 10,000. The weapon most 
in use among them is the spear (" nyiga"), — the bow 
("ka-kese") and arrow ("kese") being rare, not only 
with the inhabitants of Bagfrmi Proper, but even 
with those of the pagan states to the south. Scarcely a 
single person has a shield ; and they therefore use 
only the Kaniiri name for this arm, viz. "ngawa." 
Yery few possess the more valuable coat of mail, or 
" siillug; " and I scarcely observed a single fire-arm 
during my stay. But, on the other hand, almost all 
the pagan inhabitants of these regions are armed with 
that sort of weapon found in so many other countries 
which we have touched on our journey, viz. the hand- 
bill, or, as the Kaniiri call it, the " goliyo " (here called 
"njiga," the difference between the name of this 
weapon and that of the spear consisting in one single 
letter). Very few of the Bagfrmi people are wealthy 
* See Appendix VII. 
