DESOLATE APPEARANCE OF THE TOWN.

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high red cap or "mátri," a small flask of "óttár" of roses, two razors, a pound of cloves, a loaf of sugar, and a looking-glass; and he was particularly delighted with some of these articles, which, on account of the insecurity of the road at the present time, are imported more rarely even from Kanó. In former times a great many Arabs used to visit this place, partly for the purposes of trade, partly in order to obtain a present from the sultan; but the danger of the communication in the present reduced state of the empire is so great that not a single Arab merchant visits the town. This circumstance can not fail to render the conquering tribe more favorably disposed toward opening an intercourse with the English, or Europeans in general, by way of the Niger. At present almost the whole traffic in foreign merchandise is in the hands of the people of Ghát and A'gades, especially in those of Mohammed Bóro, my friend the fugger of A'gades, who, being a native of A'dar, and having a numerous host of full-grown sons, exercises a great influence upon commercial and even political· affairs in these quarters.

Having thus commenced an acquaintance with the most respectable man in the town, I made a longer promenade through its interior, when I found the chief quarter, which had been the residence of Bello, greatly dilapidated, and the royal mansion itself in a state of the utmost decay. No doubt a considerable proportion of the inhabitants of the town, especially the males, had joined the expedition of 'Alíyu to Zánfara; but as the greater part of the population consists of Zoramáwa or Zoghorán, or, as they are called farther westward, Jawámbe, a peculiar tribe which I have mentioned before, and about which I shall say more in another place, mixed here with the Imóshagh of A'dar, who do not join the army, the war could not exercise so great an influence upon the desolate appearance of the place. The Zoromáwa, in fact, are the artisans of the town, and the small tradesmen and brokers, and exercise a sort of monopoly in the art of working in leather, in which they are very expert, having probably learned it from the Emgedesíye.

In endeavoring to survey the town, I first paid a visit to the market, which is situated at its northeastern corner, on the brink of the rugged slope which descends into the valley. It was empty at the present time, only a few slight sheds being made ready for the following day, when the great market was to be held; and the prospect over the broad flat valley to the north and northwest, in VOL. III.-I

the direction of Dúnday, was uninterrupted, presenting at this season a scorched-up savanna, while the deep rill of the river was scarcely to be distinguished. A number of blind women, leaning on their staves or led by young children, were seen carrying pitchers of water up the cliff, affording a sad proof of the unhealthiness of the situation of the town, where blindness is very frequent. Turning then westward from the market, I reached the house of the late king 'Atíku, where at present his son Hámedu resides, who formerly had his residence at Bakúra, till that place was taken by the Góberáwa. The house is in good repair, and the quarter adjacent is tolerably well inhabited—at least, better than any other part of the town; for Hámedu is the chief of the Sissílbe or Syllebáwa,* who form the principal stock of the population of the neighboring hamlets or rugga of Sókoto. The different nationality of these Syllebáwa, causing a diversity of interests and pursuits, is stated to be one of the reasons why 'Alíyu, who has been made sultan chiefly through the influence of the Tórobe, does not like to reside at Sokoto as well as at Wurnó, although his residence at the latter place is greatly needed in the present reduced state of his power, in consequence of the continual danger from the Góberáwa, who, if the sultan should stay in Sókoto, would endanger the safety of all the people living in the open villages and hamlets between the former and the present residence; and it was on this account that Bello built the town of Magáriya (the site of which, a little to the northeast of the latter, I have indicated on a former occasion), which, however, was soon abandoned for Wurnó.

The chief, Hámedu, was at present absent; but I have mentioned already that I sent him a present immediately on my arrival in Gáwasú, on account of his influential position, although I thought it politic afterward to keep out of his way as much as possible, in order not to excite any jealousy, Hámedu being one of the nearest, if not the very nearest, to the succession, but opposed by the greater part of the present courtiers. Passing, then, along the well-frequented road which leads out of the town, we emerged from the kófa-n-'Atíku in order to obtain a first glimpse of the country which I was to traverse on my road to Gando.

* I shall say more in another place about this interesting tribe, who, originally belonging to the Negro stock of the Wákoré, have been swallowed up in the remarkable migration and conquest of the Fulbe eastward; here I will only mention the various sections into which they are divided, at least as far as these eastern quarters are concerned. These are the Lobárbe, Lómbe, Seníngbe, Yiróbe, Wárbe, Jakkóbe, Walárbe, Jagálbe, and Jatíbe.

CLAPPERTON'S DEATH.

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It was an open level tract, at present without many signs of vegetation; but that part nearest the town was agreeably enlivened by a thriving suburb extending as far as the kófa-n-Tarámnia, and buried in a thicket of shady trees and hedges, thus presenting altogether a more animated spectacle than the interior of the town itself. Keeping along the machicolated wall, here only about twelve feet high and surrounded by a ditch, and following the path between it and the suburb, we entered the town, and turned our steps to the house of the gedádo, where Captain Clapperton closed his meritorious career as an African explorer.

The house is still in tolerable repair, 'Abdú, the son of the gedádo, who, although not very energetic, and still less warlike, is a man of cheerful disposition and good principles, having too great a veneration for his father, who did so much toward embellishing and adorning this town, to allow his residence to go to ruin. The old gedádo had long outlived his master Bello, and if I had proceeded to Sókoto directly from A'gades, I should still have found him alive, for he only died during my presence in Kanó in February, 1851. I will here only mention that it was believed for a moment in England that Clapperton died from the effects of poison; but the amount of fatigue, privations, and sickness to which this most eminent of African travelers was exposed on his circuitous journey, by way of Núpe and Kanó, from the coast as far as this place, explains fully how he was unable to withstand the effects of the shock which mental disappointment exercised upon him; nay, it is wonderful how he bore up so long, if his own hints with regard to the state of his health are taken into account.

In the evening, my old friend Módibo 'Alí, and the mother of A'bú, the elder and more warlike brother of the present ghaladíma, who was slain by the Góberáwa two years before my visit to this place, treated me hospitably, and I sent a present to S'aídu, a younger son of Bello, who resides in Sókoto, and is considered as a sort of mayor.

Friday, April 22d. It was the great market-day, which was of some importance to me, as I had to buy a good many things, so that I was obliged to send there a sum of 70,000 shells; but the market did not become well-frequented or well-stocked till between two and three o'clock in the afternoon, when I myself proceeded thither. I had taken a ride in the morning through the southeastern quarter of the town, proceeding through the kófa-n-'Atíku,

thence along the wall, toward the west, and re-entered the town by the kófa-n-'Alí Jédu, where the whole quarter is very desolate, even the wall being in a state of decay, and the fine mosque, built by the gedado during Clapperton's stay here, fallen entirely to ruins. But, even in the present reduced condition of the place, the market still presented a very interesting sight, the numerous groups of people, buyers as well as sellers, and the animals of various descriptions, being picturesquely scattered over the rocky slope, as I have endeavored to represent in the plate opposite. The market was tolerably well attended, and well supplied, there being about thirty horses, three hundred head of cattle for slaughtering, fifty takérkere, or oxen of burden, and a great quantity of leather articles (this being the most celebrated branch of manufacture in Sókoto), especially leather bags, cushions, and similar articles, the leather dressed and prepared here being very soft and beautiful. There were more than a hundred bridles for sale, the workmanship of which is very famous throughout all this part of Negroland; but especially a large quantity of iron was exposed for sale, the iron of Sokoto being of excellent quality and much sought for, while that of Kanó is of bad quality. A good many slaves were exhibited, and fetched a higher price than might be supposed, a lad of very indifferent appearance being sold for 33,000 shells; I myself bought a pony for 30,000. It being just about the period when the salt-caravan visits these parts, dates also, which usually form a small addition to the principal merchandise of those traders of the desert, were to be had; and I filled a leather bag for some 2000 shells, in order to give a little more variety to my food on the long road which lay before me.

April 23d. I took another interesting ride through the kófa-nDúnday not following the direct road to that village, which lies close to the junction of the gulbi-n-Ríma with the gulbi-n-Rába, but not far from the decayed northern wall, and thus crossed a considerable channel, a branch of the river, full of water, being even at the present time about fifteen yards wide, and a foot and a half in depth, and then, keeping away from the village, reached the other branch, which was narrower, but more richly bordered by bushes, and, following it up in an easterly direction, reached the point of junction, or "megan-gámu.”

The whole valley here formed one uninterrupted rice-field; and how different was the aspect of the country from what it exhib ited on my home journey, at the end of the rainy season of the