mountain bearing the same name, and which we reached after a march of about two miles, was most charmingly situated, spreading out in several straggling groups on the slopes of the hills, and exhibiting a far greater appearance of prosperity than Badamúni. It was highly interesting to take a peep on horseback at the busy scenes which the courtyards exhibited. Poultry was here in great abundance.

While descending from the village, we crossed a beautiful ravine enlivened by a spring, and adorned by a few detached groups of date and deléb palms spreading their feathery foliage by the side of the dúm palms. Leaving then a cotton plantation, stretching out where the ravine widened, we ascended the higher ground, our route lying now through cultivated ground, at other times through forest; and after a march of about fourteen miles, we crossed a kind of shallow vale, richly adorned with vegetation, and bordered towards the north by sandy downs, over which lies the direct route to Zínder. A little lower down this valley we passed a small village called Potoró, distinguished by the extent of its cotton plantations. Along the lower grounds a few date trees form a beautiful fringe to this little oasis; here, also, springs seemed to be plentiful, and large ponds of water were formed.

Four miles beyond this place we reached the wall of the town of Mírriya, which was beautifully adorned with large tamarind trees. This town had been once

CHAP. LIV. MIʼRRIYA, A FAVOURED LOCALITY. 77

a large place, and the capital of the whole western province of Bórnu. But when the town of Zinder was founded, about twenty-five years previously, by Slímán the father of the present governor Ibrám, Mírriya began to decline, and the chief of this territory fell into a certain degree of dependence upon the governor of Zinder. At the north side of the town there is an extensive district cultivated with cotton and wheat, and irrigated likewise by springs which ooze forth from the sandy downs; besides a few date trees, a group of slender feathery-leaved gonda overshadowed the plantation, and gave it an uncommonly attractive character. Having proceeded in advance of my camels, which had followed for some time another path, I had to wait till long after sunset before they came up, and, while resting in the open air, received a visit from the governor of the town, who, in true Háusa fashion, arrived well dressed and mounted, with a numerous train of men on horseback and on foot, singing men, and musicians.

Saturday,

This was to be the day of my arrival in Zínder- an important station for me, as I December 25th. had here to wait for new supplies, without which I could scarcely hope to penetrate any great distance westward.

The country was more open than it had been the preceding day; and the larger or smaller eminences were entirely isolated, with the exception of those near Zinder, which formed more regular chains. The ground consisted mostly of coarse sand and

gravel, the rocks being entirely of sandstone, and intersected by numerous small watercourses, at present dry. This being the nature of the ground, the district was not very populous; but we passed some villages which seemed to be tolerably well off, as they had cattle and poultry.

Pursuing our north-westerly direction, we reached the town of Zínder, after a march of about nine miles and a half, and, winding round the south side of the town, which is surrounded by a low rampart of earth and a small ditch, entered it from the west. Passing then by the house of the sherif el Fási, the agent of the vizier of Bórnu, we reached the quarters which had been assigned to us, and which consisted of two clay rooms. Here I was enabled to deposit all my property in security, no place in the whole of Sudán being so ill famed, on account of the numerous conflagrations to which it is subjected, as Zinder.

The situation of Zinder is peculiar and interesting. A large mass of rock starts forth from the area of the town on the west side, while others are scattered in ridges round about the town, so that a rich supply of water collects at a short depth below the surface, fertilizing a good number of tobacco-fields, and giving to the vegetation around a richer character. This is enhanced especially by several groups of date palms, while a number of hamlets, or zangó, belonging to the Tawárek chiefs who command the salt-trade, and especially one which belongs to Lúsú, and another to A'nnur, add greatly to the interest of the place. The

CHAP. LIV.

CHARACTER OF ZINDER.

79

larger plantation which the sheríf el Fási, the agent of the vizier of Bórnu, had recently begun to the south of the town, although very promising and full of vegetables difficult to procure in this country, was too young to contribute anything to the general character of the place. It was entirely wanting in larger trees, and had only a single palm tree and a lime. I am afraid, after the revolution of December 1853, which caused the death of that noble Arab, who was one of the more distinguished specimens of his nation, it has returned to the desolate state from which he called it forth.

The accompanying ground-plan of the town and its environs will, I hope, convey some idea of its peculiar character; but it can give not the faintest notion of the bustle and traffic which concentrate in this place, however limited they may be when compared with those of European cities. Besides some indigo-dyeing, there is scarcely any industry in Zinder; yet its commercial importance has of late become so great, that it may with some propriety be called "the gate of Sudán." But of course its importance is only based on the power of the kingdom of Bórnu, which it serves to connect more directly with the north, along the western route by way of Ghát and Ghadámes, which has the great advantage over the eastern or Fezzán route, that even smaller caravans can proceed along it with some degree of security, that other route having become extremely unsafe. It was then the most busy time for the

inhabitants, the salt-caravan of the Kél-owí having arrived some time previously, and all the hamlets

1. Residence of governor, inclosed by mattingwork.

2. House of sheríf el Fási.

3. Market-place.

4. My own quarters.

5. Quarters built for the accommodation of strangers.

6. "Sánia," or plantation, belonging to the sheríf el Fási.

7. Hamlet, "zangó," belonging to A'nnur, the chief of the Kél-owí.

8. "Zangó" belonging to Lúsú, the chief of the Kél-azanéres.

9. "Zangó" belonging to some other chiefs among the Tawárek.

situated around the town being full of these desert traders, who during their leisure hours endeavoured to make themselves as merry as possible with music and dancing. This gave me an opportunity of seeing