62 
DRESS OF THE WOMEN. 
some mats or a cow-hide. The rich have cotton mattresses, and 
coverlets, which the neighbouring Moors manufacture from 
camel's hair and sheep's wool. I saw a woman of Cabra 
employed in spinning these coverlets. 
The natives of Timbuctoo, as I before observed, have 
several wives, and to these many add their slaves. The 
Moors, indeed, cohabit only with their slaves, and these 
females are employed in vending merchandise in the streets, 
such as colats, allspice, &c. Some also have a little stall in 
the market-place, while the favourite stays at home, superin- 
tending those whose business it is to cook for the household : 
the favourite herself prepares the husband's meals. These 
women are very neatly dressed : their costume consists of 
a coussabe, like that worn by the men, except that it has not 
large sleeves. Their shoes are of morocco. The fashion of the 
head-dress sometimes varies ; it principally consists of a 
fatara of fine muslin, or some other cotton stuff of European 
manufacture. Their hair is beautifully platted. The prin- 
cipal tress, which is about an inch thick, comes from the 
back to the front of the head, and is terminated by a piece 
of cornelian of a round form and concave in the centre ; 
they put a little cushion under the tress to support it, and 
add to that ornament several other trinkets, made of imita- 
tion of amber or coral, and bits of cornelian cut like that just 
mentioned. They also anoint the head and the whole body 
with butter, but less profusely than the Bambaras and the 
Mandingoes. The great heat, which is augmented by the 
scorching east wind, renders this custom necessary. The 
women of the richer class have always a great number of 
glass beads about their necks and in their ears. Like the 
wom,en of Jenne, they wear nose-rings ; and the female who 
is not rich enough to procure a ring, substitutes a bit of red 
silk for it ; they wear silver bracelets, and ancle- rings of 
plated steel, the latter of which are made in the country; 
instead of being round, like the bracelets, are flat, and about 
