KAGNABAK ISLAND, BISSAGOS ARCHIPELAGO. 
585 
Arnbena . — The chief of this village made me a present of some 
twenty “ fetishes,” rudely carved into what purported to be the 
figures of cows or elephants. They might have equally well passed 
for the figures of men and women. I was rather surprised, on my 
return to France, to find that these “ fetishes” were most acceptable 
to my curio-collecting friends. The result, as may be anticipated, is 
that not one has been retained by me. 
Enlwda . — This village would be an excellent trading station for 
establishing a depbt for the purchase and reception of palm-nuts and 
palm-oil. 
Arikatil , AnJcaguil , and AnJcencbe . — In these three villages nothing 
is to be got in the way of trade, as there is scarcely any product other 
than oranges and bananas. 
Menelc . — A considerable trade could be done here in “ paddy” 
(rice before the husk is removed). The rice is very white and of 
superior quality. I bought fifty bushels for about ten kilos of beads 
and other glass trifles — a rather good bargain, it may be observed. 
The Bissagos of this village have the evil reputation of being thieves 
and of having no sense of honour. They are also said to be 
treacherous. I must, however, confess that I had no reason to 
complain of my reception. It is true that I was always careful to 
approach the king before anyone else with a present of tobacco, 
powder, and brandy, or other merchandise. This present invariably 
assured my immunity from plunder. 
Bdhn . — The trade here would consist mainly of palm-nuts and 
palm-oil. 
Mdene . — Bullocks and goats, hides and skins form the staple trade 
of the village. 
Bdme. — Here, again, we find the universal goat; paddy, as well as 
cleaned rice, and oranges are procurable. 
AmboudouJco . — The fisheries here are of considerable extent. All 
along the coast very excellent dried fish are procurable. The principal 
species is the mullet. The natives split them in two and dry them in 
the sun. After being dried, they exude an odour far from agreeable 
to the olfactory senses, but they give a most excellent flavour to 
cooked rice. 
Anhoumero . — The natives of this village are skilful in the art of 
carving miniature pirogues. I bought two large boxes of them which 
contained at least 100. When I returned to Senegal the captain of 
an English mailboat took them off my hands at three times their 
value, and sold them at once to the passengers for double the money 
he paid me. Nevertheless, the passengers were delighted with their 
bargains. 
This general summary of the villages will enable my readers to 
form some general idea of (he internal resources of Kagnabak, which 
is considered a very fertile island. The soil, like that of the whole 
of Portuguese Guinea, is of two classes — argillaceous and arenaceous. 
There are no mountains to be seen anywhere, not even little hills ; all 
is a uniform level. Nevertheless, at the entrance of each village one 
finds small, running streams, supplied by large subterranean sheets of 
