194 
AFRICA AND ITS EXPLORATION. 
fluence of the Cubbie, ancl then went down it again to 
Boussa, where the king, who was glad to see them 
again, received them with the utmost cordiality. 
On taking leave of the King, the brothers were at a 
loss to express their gratitude for his kindness and 
hospitality, his zeal in their cause, and the protection 
he was ever ready to extend during their stay of nearly 
two months in his capital. The natives showed great 
regret at losing their visitors, and knelt in the path of 
the brothers, praying with uplifted hands to their gods 
on their behalf. 
Now began the descent of the Niger. A halt had to 
be made at the island of Melalie, whose chief begged the 
white men to accept a very fine kid. We may be sure 
they were too polite to refuse it. The Landers next 
passed the large town of Congi, the Songa of Clapperton, 
and then Inguazilligie, the rendezvous of merchants 
travelling between Nouffe and the districts north-east 
of Borghoo. Below Inguazilligie they halted at Pata- 
sliie, a large fertile island of great beauty, planted with 
palm groves and magnificent trees. 
On the 4th October, after further delays, they re¬ 
sumed their course, and being carried down by the 
current, were soon out of sight of Lever, or Layaba, 
and its wretched inhabitants. 
The first town the brothers came to was Bajiebo, a 
large and spacious city, which for dirt, noise, and con¬ 
fusion, could not be surpassed. Next came Leechee, 
inhabited by Nouffe people, and the island of Madje, 
where the Niger divides into three parts. Just beyond, 
the travellers suddenly found themselves opposite a 
remarkable rock, two hundred and eighty feet high, 
called Mount Ivesa, which rises perpendicularly from the 
centre of the stream. This rock is greatly venerated by 
the natives, who believe it to be the favourite home of 
a beneficent genius. 
At Belee, a little above Rabba, the brothers received 
a visit from the “ King of the Dark Waters,” chief of 
the island of Zagoshi, who appeared in a canoe of great 
length and unusual cleanliness, decked with scarlet cloth 
