118 HOSPITALITY OF FONEBE, CHIEF OF OGO. 
expatiated in praise of white men, and declared he esteemed 
them highly, because in a journey he had made to St. Louis, 
he had met with a kind reception from them. He next brought 
me a large vessel filled with honey and water, which I relished 
exceedingly ; and seating himself near me, he took me by the 
hand, and kept constantly asking how I found myself. I was 
truly astonished ; I fancied myself in an enchanted country ; 
and I could not have imagined before my journey, that a 
black in the centre of Africa, could have such civilized man- 
ners. Having observed a bunch of keys in his hand, I asked 
him the use of them ; he immediately took me across several 
courts, in one of which were his wife and daughters, all very 
pretty, whom he introduced to me ; and then opened several 
storehouses, where I saw a great quantity of millet; he shewed 
me this proof of his understanding and prudence with a 
degree of pride, which I could not censure, I admired the 
simplicity of his locks and keys, the former were of wood, the 
latter resembled the picklocks of our locksmiths. 
When I had returned to my bed, he asked what I should 
like for supper ; of course I could do no other than leave the 
choice to himself. 
' When the hour of prayer arrived, I accompanied Fonebé 
to the diakra or mosque which I wished to see. It was a 
spacious building of clay twelve feet high, with a roof and 
projecting gutters to carry off the rain. As I was not permitted 
to enter this temple, I saw the interior through one of the 
