Chap. XXVI. THE GOVERNOR OF MA'SHEISTA. 179 
a servant of Dan Tanoma, could not well conduct me 
any further. 
We therefore entered the town by the north gate, 
and found people very busy repairing the fortifica- 
tion, consisting of two walls and three ditches of con- 
siderable depth, two of which ran outside round the 
outer wall, while the third was inclosed between the 
two walls. 
Having presented ourselves at the residence of the 
governor, which was situated in the middle of the 
town, and consisted altogether of reed-work, we ob- 
tained good quarters, with a spacious and cool shed, 
which was the only thing we wanted ; for being 
anxious not to lose any more time, I had resolved 
to start again in the afternoon. In order, there- 
fore, to obtain a guide as soon as possible, I went 
to pay my compliments to the governor, whose name 
was Mohammed. After a little delay, he came out 
of the interior of his reed house into the audience- 
hall, which likewise consisted entirely of reed- work, 
but was spacious and airy; there he sat down upon a 
sort of divan, similar to the ankareb used in Egypt, 
and made of the branches of the tukkuruwa, which 
had been brought in expressly for the purpose. My 
interview, however, was short, for neither was he 
himself a lively or inquisitive man, nor was my Tebu 
servant, whom, as I myself was not yet able to speak 
Kaniiri with tolerable fluency, I was obliged to employ 
as interpreter, at all distinguished either by eloquence 
K 2 
