WILD FRUITS. 
35 
caused me the most acute pain. This plant abounds in 
sandy soils ; the negroes on the Senegal call it khakhame. 
No person ever visited the environs of that river vrithout 
having been cruelly tormented by it. Fatigue, however, 
made me forget my sufferings, and I slept soundly. 
September 3rd. About one in the morning I was 
awakened to take a little scmgleh,^ and two hours after- 
wards commenced the preparations for departure ; at five we 
started. The heat during the day was excessive, augmented 
as it was by a scorching east wind. My thirst was insup- 
portable ; perceiving a group of trees, I ran to them, 
thinking to find water, but was disappointed ; and I must 
have been quite knocked up had I not met by the way with 
abundance of grewia, the yellow fruit of which, of the size 
of a pea, is very glutinous, though far from agreeable to 
the taste. I kept continually chewing it, which relieved me 
much. At length, about one o'clock, we reached a pool, 
where we rested ourselves till three. Here 1 quenched my 
thirst, and my companions bathed : we had travelled nine 
miles to the N. E. | N. over an absolutely sandy soil. 
Having resumed our route to N. E. J E. we came to so- 
lid ground, covered with small flints of a bright red which 
incommoded us much. We saw several ponds ; and I re- 
marked one on the banks of which were six baobabs of pro- 
digious dimensions. At ten we came to a ravine where there 
was water: here we halted for the night. We were more 
fortunate in the latter part of the day than we had been in 
the morning ; for there was no want of water, and we found 
in abundance a plant which I took for an anona^ a foot 
high, and bearing extremely green foliage : its fruits is of the 
size of a pigeon's egg, and contains several seeds ; the pulp, 
slightly acid, is very good to eat. The Moors fell upon this 
fruit with avidity and devoured it ; I followed their example 
* A sort of gruel made of the flour of millet or other grain. 
D 2 
