142 
TRAVELS m AFRICA. 
Chap. XXV. 
With regard to the precious metals, a small supply 
of silver is imported by the merchants, but rather 
exceptionally, most of the latter being but agents 
or commissioners engaged to effect the sale of the 
merchandise forwarded from Tripoli and Fezzan. 
The silver likewise supplies a branch of industry, the 
silversmiths, who are generally identical with the 
blacksmiths, being very clever in making rings and 
anklets. In Kan6 scarcely any tradesman will ob- 
ject to receive a dollar in payment. With regard to 
iron, which forms a very considerable branch of in- 
dustry in the place, I will only say that it is far in- 
ferior to that of Wandala or Mandara and Buban- 
jidda, which I shall mention in the course of my 
proceedings. Spears, daggers, hoes, and stirrups are 
the articles most extensively produced in iron. 
As for gold, though a general standard, of the mith- 
kal at four thousand kurdi, is usually maintained, 
in Timbuktu its price greatly varies, from three 
thousand five hundred up to four thousand five hun- 
dred kurdi ; but this unreasonable fluctuation is but 
nominal, gold being scarcely ever bought in Tim- 
buktu for ready money, but for turkedis, when a 
turkedi bought in Kano for eighteen hundred, or at 
the utmost two thousand, fetches there a mithkal. 
One hundred mithkals of gold may easily be bought 
in Kan 6 at any time. Even the common currency of 
the Kano market, the " uri " {pi. kurdi) or shell 
{Cyprcea moneta), 2,500 of which are equal to the 
