TRAVELS IN AFRICA. 97 
any I had before seen ; it was composed of dark- 
brown mould, intermixed with white sand and 
sand-stone. The walls and many of the houses 
were both strongly and well built with yellow 
clay, raised from about four feet below the sur- 
face, and intermixed with cut straw or withered 
grass and cow-dung. 
It was destroyed about twelve months before 
by the people of Bondoo, in one of their plun- 
dering excursions, and many of its inhabitants 
were either killed or made prisoners (slaves), a 
fate but too common in this country, w^here the 
strongest party always finds an excuse for mak- 
ing war on the weaker, not unfrequently carry- 
ing off whole towns of miserable inoffensive 
beings, without either any previous intimation 
of their hostile intentions, or indeed any cause 
given by those wretched objects of their avari- 
cious encroachments. On all such occasions, 
the only object in view is the attainment of 
money, as they call it, and in this they suc- 
ceed by selling their unfortunate fellow-crea- 
tures, and, what is still more unnatural, their 
compatriots, to slave-dealers. 
A multitude of ideas, bringing with them the 
conviction of how much Englishmen, and in- 
deed all civilized nations, are favoured by Di- 
vine Providence, in enjoying freedom and se- 
curity against such unwarranted and barbarous 
H 
