JOURNEY FROM BOUSSA TO KANO. 
155 
and belonging to Houssa, also joined, but declared themselves 
independent of the authority of Kashna. The states of Youri 
and Cubbi have also since joined, as have Doura and the southern 
part of Zegzeg. Youri, they say, was forced to join by the others 
of the Towia, as their districts nearly surround it. The strength of 
Guari lies in the bravery of its inhabitants and the number of horse 
they can bring into the field — they say a thousand : this may be 
all true, but I think they owe their strength to the hilly and woody 
nature of their country. The capital of this district, also called 
Guari, is situated in latitude 10° 54' north, longitude 8° T east; 
built partly on the north-east side of a hill, and partly in a narrow 
valley, through which a muddy stream runs that is dry in the 
summer months ; this stream rises only a day's journey in the 
mountains or hills south of Guari, runs through part of Zamfra, 
and divides in one part the states of Katongkora and Guari, and 
enters into the Kodonia in Nyffe. The city or town has two 
walls, the old and the new ; the old in ruins ever since it was 
stormed by old Bello. At the rising of the F ellatas it surrounded 
the hill on which the city is built, and great part of another ; the 
new wall runs over the ridge of the hill, cutting the town into one 
half the size it was formerly ; and even now the wall is much too 
extensive for the inhabitants to defend, and appears enclosing a 
few scattered houses and villages, not a town or city. The house 
of the chief is like a walled village, with a large clay castle at one 
end : this serves as the harem of the chief, and is well filled, or, 
more properly speaking, there are a great number of women in it. 
The other houses in the enclosure are huts, or coozies, occupied 
by blacksmiths, weavers, tailors, dyers, &c. all belonging to his 
household. 
Friday, 7th. — Morning cloudy. At 8 A. M. loaded the bullocks 
and camel, and sent them off. 1 went and took leave of the chief 
Abubuker, where 1 found an escort of four horsemen ready to con- 
x 2 
