432 
CONJUGAL QUARREL. 
saw in it a great quantity of cloth, and earthen pots, which 
are made here. 
At six o'clock in the morning of the 23rd of February, we 
advanced six miles to the N. E. We crossed a stream which 
was nearly dry, and then continued seven miles further in the 
same direction. The soil, which is level, is composed of grey 
sand, and in some places of red earth mixed with gravel. 
The country was open, and I saw but very few nedes 
and ces„ We were greatly oppressed by the heat, and 
unfortunately found very little water on the road. About 
two in the afternoon we arrived at Gniape, excessively 
thirsty and fatigued. The environs of this village are tole- 
rably well cultivated. Old Kai-mou, my guide, had a seri- 
ous quarrel with one of his wives : he threatened to 
strike her ; she imprudently dared him to do so ; and the 
old man, in a fit of rage, beat her unmercifully. The poor 
creature took up a stick to defend herself, but fortunately 
some Mandingoes of the caravan, hearing the noise, came 
and interfered. The woman, being prevented from taking her 
revenge, had recourse to tears, and, in the violence of her 
passion, struck her own bosom. This was the only time I 
ever saw among these people a wife presume to resist her 
husband. The animosity was long kept up between the 
parties, and they did not even speak to each other ; at 
length, after the lapse of three or four days, a Mandingo 
negro endeavoured to effect a reconciliation ; what he said, 
certainly had some influence, for he succeeded in restoring 
peace between the husband and wife. The woman was obliged 
to confess that she was in the wrong, for the husband would 
never have yielded. To ratify the peace, Kai-mou broke a 
colat-nut, half of which he gave to his wife, and he ate the 
other half himself. From that moment they were friends. 
The women of these countries easily forget this kind of treat- 
ment, to which they are accustomed. 
At six o'clock in the morning of the 24th of February, 
