M ASSOWA. 
199 
road lay in nearly a westerly direction, over barren and rugged 
hills, where they met with occasionally a small village or en- 
campment of the natives, who, out of respect to Alii Man da, 
treated the party, in general, with civility, though the provisions 
which they supplied were scanty, and by no means of the best 
quality. 
On the 13th, in the afternoon, after having travelled nearly 
fifty miles, they reached a station on the edge of an extensive 
salt-plain, where they stopped to refresh themselves under the 
shade of some acacias, near some wells of fresh-water. At this 
place they were provided by the natives with a sort of sandals, 
made of the leaves of a dwarf species of palm, which are invaria- 
bly used by travellers for crossing the salt. The plain above- 
mentioned lies perfectly flat, in a north-east and south-west direct 
tion, and is said to be four days journey in extent. The first 
half mile, from not being firmly crusted, was slippery and dan- 
gerous to pass, the feet sinking every step into the mud, as is 
usual in crossing a salt-marsh. After this, the surface became 
strongly crusted, hard and crystallised, resembling in appear- 
ance a rough coarse sheet of ice, which has been covered with* 
snow, thawed and frozen again ; branches of pure salt, resem- 
bling pieces of madrepore, occasionally rose above the surface ; 
and two small hills stood in the centre of the plain, which bore a 
very remarkable appearance from their singularly insulated 
situation. 
" This plain took Mr. Coflin and his party about five hours to 
cross, when they reached the country of the Assa Durwa, which 
the Has humorously terms his barbarian territory. On this side 
