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THE MANDINGOES. 
The Mandingoes, who are naturally indolent, make their 
slaves work hard.* Those who have no slaves, are obliged 
to cultivate their own fields, but in that case they labour so 
inefficiently, that their harvest does not maintain them 
during the whole year. They, therefore, purchase from 
the Bambara negroes^ who sell their surplus grain to pro- 
cure salt. 
The slaves, being regarded by the Mandingoes as their 
principal wealth, are not ill-treated; their food is the same 
as that of their masters, though sometimes it is not quite so 
abundant; they are dressed in a coarse pagne, which they 
wear to the last rag : they go naked until they are eighteen, 
or sometimes older. When they are not looked after, their 
natural indolence causes them to neglect their work : but 
towards that fault their masters are rather indulgent. They 
never punish them severely, except for theft or desertion. 
When it is suspected that a slave intends to run away, irons 
are put on his legs. 
The Mandingoes measure time by years, months, 
weeks, and days, and I observed that they never miscalculated. 
They reckon the month by lunar revolutions, and twelve 
months make one year, which is called sang ; their weeks 
consist of seven days. The market is held in the village once 
every week. They do not measure the day by hours, but divide 
it into four parts ; the forenoon, until eleven o'clock, is called 
soy Oman ; from that hour to four o'clock, tele',\ from four to 
seven o'clock, oula ; and the night is called soudo. 
The Mandingoes of this part of Africa are all traders ; 
they travel much, even in the rainy season, but, being obliged 
to carry their merchandise on their heads, they take little 
with them, and journey at a slow pace. Their trade of 
course is not lucrative. They never travel without having 
* A Mandingo who has eight or ten slaves is reckoned rich, 
t T^l^, day, sun. 
