RESIDENCE AT SOCCATOO AND MAGARIA. 
221 
put in and lightly covered. If the season be abundant in rain, the 
cotton is plenty; if not, the crop is bad. The time of pulling is in 
the months of December and January. When worked, it is done by 
the women, clearing it of the seeds by two small iron pins, between 
which the cotton passes over a flat stone lying on the ground; the 
seeds are thrown behind them, the cotton before. The seeds they 
give to bullocks and camels, and are considered as very fattening. 
The cotton being prepared, is put on a distaff, which is short, light, 
neat, and small, great pains being taken in shaping and ornament- 
ing it. The females who spin it have generally small looking- 
glasses in their baskets of cotton, with which they often survey their 
teeth and eyes. A piece of chalk, or pipe-clay, is in constant use, 
to rub the spinning thumb and finger. The occupation of spinning 
is generally assigned to married women, or some old female slave 
that is a favourite : weaving and sowing is left to the men. They 
have three different kinds of hoes : one with a handle of about five 
feet in length, and a small head stuck into the end of the staff'; 
this is used in sowing the grain : one with a handle of about three 
feet in length, with a small iron head stuck into the end of the 
staff : the third, called gilma, has a short bent handle, with a large 
head, and is used in all the heavy work instead of a spade. 
Their manufactures are confined to a very few articles, the 
principal of which is the dying of tanned goat skins red and yellow. 
The red skins are dyed with the leaves of a red millet, which is 
pounded in water mixed with natron ; when thick enough, the skin 
is put on the stretch, and the dye rubbed in. The yellow is with 
the root of a tree called raurya, which is also pounded in water 
mixed with natron, and laid on the skin in the same manner as the 
red. The latter are considered as superior to all the other skins 
dyed of the same colour in any part of Houssa. A number both of 
the red and yellow skins are carried to Kano and Kashna almost 
