FESTIVITIES ON THE OCCASION. 185 
was, as I have already mentioned, the chief of the caravan, 
and it was he who furnished the gunpowder for the rejoicings. 
These people have a bad habit of putting too great a charge 
of powder into their muskets, and on this occasion one of 
them burst in the hands of a negro ; but fortunately, the poor 
fellow was not hurt. About eleven in the forenoon Ibrahim, 
accompanied by the two Mandingoes who were engaged in the 
dispute to which I have already alluded, came to invite me to 
partake of their dinner, and they again requested me to for- 
get what had passed. I accepted the invitation. On en- 
tering Ibrahim's hut, 1 saw a large calabash full of boiled rice, 
upon which was laid a considerable quantity of the beef. 
We sat down and each helped himself with his hands, 
according to the negro custom. When the rice was finished, 
Ibrahim distributed the meat. I observed that the Man- 
dingoes ate an unusual quantity that day. Eating, indeed, 
seems to be the highest pleasure they are capable of enjoying. 
During the rest of the day they were very merry, and they 
exchanged the bullock's hide for some rice, which we ate 
during our journey. 
On the 29th of April, the remainder of the meat which 
had been smoked all night was put into leather bags, and we 
resumed our journey at six in the morning. Opposite to 
the village, about half a mile to the north, there was a small 
chain of mountains, with level summits ; and at each ex- 
tremity of the chain one rises to a considerable height above 
the rest, like the turret of an ancient castle. These moun- 
tains have no vegetation. We proceeded for a mile east- 
ward, upon rocks level with the surface of the ground, of a 
reddish colour and porous nature, and we next ascended a 
mountain composed of blocks of beautiful black granite, 
among which grew various large trees particularly the nede, 
which abounds throughout all this part of the country. The 
road was very bad ; we had to walk upon black calcined 
stones, which had the appearaiice of being of volcanic origin. 
After crossing several little streams that flow over beds of 
