58 
RESIDENCE AT KATUNGA. 
negroes in general. The men are well made, and have an inde- 
pendent carriage, that cannot fail to attract attention. The women 
are almost invariably of a more ordinary appearance than the men, 
which may arise from their being more exposed to the sun, and the 
drudgery they are obliged to undergo ; all the labour of the land 
devolving on them. 
The city of Eyeo (in Houssa language, Ivatunga), the capital of 
Yourriba, is situated in latitude 8° 59' north, longitude 6° 12 ' east. 
It is built on the sloping side and round the base of a small range 
of granite hills, which, as it were, forms the citadel of the town ; 
they are formed of stupendous blocks of gray granite of the softest 
kind, some of which are seen hanging from the summits, in the 
most frightful manner, while others, resting on very small bases, 
appear as if the least touch would send them down into the valley 
beneath. The soil on which the town is built is formed of clay 
and gravel, mixed with sand, which has obviously been produced 
from the crumbling granite. The appearance of these hills is that 
of a mass of rocks left bare by the tide. A belt of thick wood runs 
round the walls, which are built of clay, and about twenty feet 
high, and surrounded by a dry ditch. There are ten gates in the 
walls, which are about fifteen miles in circumference, of an oval 
shape, about four miles in diameter one way, and six miles the other, 
the south end leaning against the rocky hills, and forming an inac- 
cessible barrier in that quarter. The king’s houses and those of his 
women occupy about a square mile, and are on the south side of the 
hills, having two large parks, one in front, and another facing the 
north. They are all built of clay, and have thatched roofs, similar to 
those nearer the coast. The posts supporting the verandahs and the 
doors of the king's and caboceers’ houses are generally carved in 
has relief, with figures representing the boa killing an antelope or 
a hog, or with processions of warriors attended by drummers. The 
latter are by no means meanly executed, conveying the expression 
