Chap. XXVI. BU'NDL— KA'RDA. 
195 
Biindi is a place of tolerable size, but with little 
industry ; and the province of which it is the capital 
is going to ruin more and more, on account of the 
laziness and negligence of its governor, — a statement 
which will be amply proved by the account of my 
journey through the same district in 1854. The 
town probably contains eight or nine thousand inha- 
bitants, who belong to the Manga nation, which 
seems to be the chief element of the Kanuri, and pre- 
serves many very remarkable customs. The special 
name of the clan of this tribe which dwells hereabouts 
is Karda. There is no market here of any importance; 
but the inhabitants seem to be tolerably at their ease, 
and there was music and racing, or " kadaske," in 
the evening, accompanied by the joyous shrill voices, 
the " wululi," of the women. We, however, seemed 
to be forgotten; and it was nine o'clock at night, 
long after we had supped, when we received a dish 
for ourselves, and corn for the horse. .It is rather 
remarkable that these western provinces of Bornu 
were never conquered by the Fulbe or Fellata? 
though lying so much nearer to those countries of 
which they have definitively taken possession than 
that part of Bornu situated between the old capital 
and the great lagoon. The consequence is, that a 
certain degree of independence is allowed to them, 
and that they do not pay any tithes to the sheikh.* 
* Here I will give the route fromKano to A'lamay, near Bundi, 
by way of Khadeja, as it determines approximately the position 
of this town, which has been also mentioned by Clapperton as a 
o 2 
