Chap. XXXIII. STRUCTURE OF THE HUTS. 
381 
nant water, and was richly overgrown with succulent 
grass, we lay down on its eastern bank in the cool 
shade of some luxuriant kurna-trees, the largest trees 
of this species I have ever seen, where we spread all 
our luggage, which had been wetted the preceding 
night, out to dry, while the horses were grazing upon 
the fresh herbage. In this cool and pleasant spot, 
which afforded a view over a great part of the village, 
I breakfasted upon " chebchebe," a light and palatable 
Kaniiri sweetmeat, and upon " nufu," or habb' el 
aziz, dug up in large quantities almost over the whole 
of Bornu. 
By and by, as another storm seemed impending, we 
looked about for quarters, and I with my three ser- 
vants and Mallem Katiiri took possession of a small 
courtyard inclosed with a light fence four feet high 
composed of mats and thorny bushes, which contained 
four huts, while a fifth, together with the granary, 
had fallen in. The huts, however, were rather nar- 
row, encumbered as they were with a great deal of 
earthenware, besides the large " gebam" or urn, con- 
taining the necessary quantity of corn for about a 
week, and the " bazam " or the water-jar ; and the doors 
— if doors they could be called — were so extremely 
small, while they were raised about a foot from the 
ground, that a person not accustomed to the task had 
the greatest difficulty to creep in. These narrow 
doors were direct proofs of the great power of the 
rains in these climes, against which the natives have 
to protect themselves, as well as the raised and well- 
