MANDINGO SCHOOL. 
381 
dergone. The chief was so old that he could not speak to 
me ; but he manifested his friendly feeling towards me by 
signs. When I was taking my leave of him he promised to 
forward me on the first opportunity. I was quartered with 
a saracolet^ whom I supposed to be a Musulman. He had 
been so formerly^ but since his return from his travels he 
had been in the habit of drinking the beer of the country. 
He lodged me in a neat little hut, and ordered one of his 
wives to prepare for me a dinner of rice, with pistachio 
sauce, and I gave the cook a little salt to season it. My 
host took me out to shew me the village ; he conducted me 
to some Mahometan Mandingoes, whom I found assembled 
in large earth-built houses, which served as places of rendez- 
vous for the men, and schools for the Musulman children. 
There are several of these places in the village. When I entered 
some were employed in making pagnes, and others in reading 
the Koran. They immediately laid aside their occupations, 
and I became the subject of conversation. They made me 
seat myself beside them on a bullock's hide, and they sent 
for a Moor who had come from Sansanding with a caravan 
of salt, which he wished to exchange for colats. 
This Moor was of a very dark complexion. He said 
that he was a native of Waleth. He asked me many ques- 
tions about my country and my parents. He inquired their 
names, which I immediately invented. I told him that my 
father was named Mohammed-Abdoulkerim, and my mother 
Mariam, and that my father was a merchant at Alexandria. 
He asked me whether they were still living. This question 
was most absurd, as 1 had just told him that I had left 
my country in my earliest childhood. I repeated this state- 
ment, and he replied — "Since you do not know whether 
your parents are living, why are you going back to your 
country ? You might as well profess your religion in any 
other." I replied that I hoped to find a brother who would, 
doubtless, make over to me part of the property left by my 
