436 
SOMOU. 
two of these ropes, which were about six yards long and an 
inch thick : I paid for each fifteen cowries, (equivalent to a 
sou and a half.) I met with a man from Jenne, who was 
very kind and civil to me. On my complaining of fatigue, 
he advised me to be patient, as we had not far to go before 
we should reach Jenne. 
At six in the morning of the 2nd of March, we left 
Syenso, and advanced between' north and east the distance 
of seven miles. A little beyond the village we crossed a 
marsh, in which the water was knee-deep. The surrounding 
country is covered with rich pasturage. About eleven we 
stopped at Somou, a village situated in an open and well 
cultivated plain. I was astonished at the great quantity of 
fish which I saw in the market ; I bought some for supper 
and found it very good. I also purchased some lotus bread, 
which had a very pleasant taste ; it was rather acid and in 
colour resembled gingerbread. It was made of the fruit of 
the rhamnus lotus, mentioned by Mungo Park. There were 
in the market some women selling millet stubble, which is 
used for fuel on account of the scarcity of wood. 1 also saw 
a small quantity of sulphur in sticks ; it is brought from the 
markets of Jenne, Sego, Sansanding, and Yamina, but I 
know not what use is made of it here. All the villages on 
this road, from Oulasso to Jenne, are built of bricks baked 
in the sun. These bricks, which are a foot long, eight inches 
broad and a foot thick, are made without the aid of a mould. 
The earth, being mixed to a proper consistence, is spread 
upon the ground, and when half dry it is shaped into the form 
of bricks, which are laid in the sun, and turned from side to 
side until sufficiently baked. The houses, or rather huts, are 
eight or nine feet high, twelve or fourteen long, and eight 
wide. The walls are eighteen inches thick and rudely built, 
the bricks being not even cemented together. They have all 
flat roofs, which are supported by thick posts, placed within 
at suitable distances from each other, and similar posts are 
