62 ' TRAVELS IN THE 
is by no means so great as in Europe. The Foulahs use the 
milk chiefly as an article of diet, and that, not until it is quite 
sour. The cream which it affords is very thick, and is converted 
into butter by stirring it violently in a large calabash. This 
butter, when melted over a gentle fire, and freed from impu- 
rities, is preserved in small earthen pots, and forms a part in 
most of their dishes ; it serves likewise to anoint their heads, 
and is bestowed very liberally on their faces and arms. 
But although milk is plentiful, it is somewhat remarkable 
that the Foulahs, and indeed all the inhabitants of this part of 
Africa, are totally unacquainted with the art of making cheese. 
A firm attachment to the customs of their ancestors, makes 
them view with an eye of prejudice every thing that looks like 
innovation. The heat of the climate, and the great scarcity of 
salt, are held forth as unanswerable objections ; and the whole 
process appears to them too long and troublesome, to be at- 
tended with any sohd advantage. 
Besides the cattle, which constitute the chief wealth of the 
Foulahs, they possess some excellent horses, the breed of which 
seems to be a mixture of the Arabian with the original African. 
