MOORJA. DATLIBOO. 67 had been destroyed, the bentang tree had been burnt, the wells had been filled up, and man could exist there no longer. About noon, my horse was so much fatigued, that I could not keep up with my companions; but they would not intirely desert me, as the place, they said, was infested by lions; one of their number therefore remained with me, while the others went forward. In the afternoon we arrived at Galloo, a considerable town, situated in a beautiful and fertile valley, surrounded by high rocks. At Galloo my companions had a fine sheep given them by the Dooty, or chief, and my horse fared as well as his rider. In the morning, I returned thanks to my host, while my fellow-travellers offered up their prayers that he might never want, and we resumed our journey. About three o'clock, we reached Moorja, a large trading town, to which the Arabs bring great quantities of salt to exchange for corn and cotton cloth. As corn was plentiful, the inhabitants were liberal. We had as much corn and milk sent us, by different persons, as would have been sufficient for three times our number; and though we remained here the whole of the following day, we experienced no diminution of their hospitality. The road from Moorja was exceedingly romantic, lying between two rocky hills. The Arabs sometimes lie in wait here to plunder travellers. In the evening we arrived at Datliboo, where we had a tremendous tornado. The house in which admitted the rain in we lodged being flat roofed, streams; the floor was ancle deep in water, the fire was extinguished, and we passed the night on some bundles of sticks that happened to lie in a corner. The next day we passed a large kafilah returning from Sego, the capital of Bambarra, with corn-paddles, mats, and other utensils. We slept at Fanimboo, a small village, where the chief produced three old muskets for me to mend, and was much disappointed when he found that all white men were not gunsmiths. On the following day we continued our journey. The towns were now more numerous, and the land, not employed in cultivation, afforded excellent pasturage; but, as travellers were daily passing to or from Sego, the inhabitants were less hospitable to strangers. My horse becoming weaker every day, I was obliged to drive him before me, and I did not reach the town of Geosorro till some time after my companions. We had none of us tasted food during the last twenty-four hours, and the Dooty refused to give or sell us any provisions. We lay down to sleep with empty stomachs, but at midnight I was awakened with the joyful cry of "the victuals are come." The next day, my Kaartan friends having better horses than mine, left me. I was walking alone, when I met a kafilah of slaves, about seventy in number, coming from Sego. They were fastened together by thongs of leather, twisted like a rope, and tied round the neck; seven slaves upon a rope, and between every rope a man with a musket. Many of the slaves were in bad condition, and many of them were women. Here was another monument of war, except where treachery bore a part. In the rear of the slaves, came the servant of a merchant whom I remembered to have seen at Benowm. He knew me, and told me that these poor captives had yet to march through Ludamar and the Sahara, in their way to Marocco. In the afternoon, I met about twenty Moors on horseback, the owners of the slaves. They asked me many questions, but were not uncivil. At Doolinkeaboo, where I passed the night, the chief of the village limited his hospitality to a draught of water; but his wife, when he was gone into the fields the next morning, sent me a handful of meal. At noon, I had milk given me by some Foolah shepherds, at a watering place by the way; and hearing that two men were going from hence to Sego, I proceeded in their company. We halted at a small village, where an acquaintance of one of my companions invited us to a sort of public entertainment. A dish made of meal and sour milk, and beer made from corn, were distributed with great liberality. The company was composed of both men and women, and both seemed a little intoxicated, though civil in their behaviour. They nodded to each other, when about to drink, and, on setting down the calabash, commonly said "thank you." The next day we passed through several large villages, where I was constantly taken for a Moor, and the miserable condition of my horse, which I continued to drive before me, was a subject of mirth to the Bambarrahs. One said of me, "he has been at Mecca; you may see that by his appearance;" another asked if my horse were sick; and a third if I would sell him. I believe my two black companions were ashamed to be seen with We took up our lodging at a small village, me. where a button purchased provisions for myself and my horse. Here I was told that the next day I should see the great water. The thoughts of seeing the great water did not permit me to sleep, and I rose, and saddled my horse before day; but I was obliged to wait till the inhabitants, to whom the river was no novelty, and lions were near neighbours, thought proper to open their gates. This was market day at Sego, and the roads were filled with people, carrying different articles to sell. We passed four large villages, and at eight o'clock saw the smoke over the capital. As I was riding over some marshy ground, one of my fellow-travellers exclaimed "see the water!" and looking forwards, I saw, with infinite pleasure, the great object of my journey, the majestic Niger of the Europeans, the Neele of the Negroes, of the Arabs, and Moors, the Great river of the Mandingoes, glittering to the morning sun, as broad as the Thames at Westminster, and flowing to the eastward. I hastened to the brink, and drank of the water, with grateful adoration of that providence which had protected me thus far on my journey. From Jarra to Sego occupied twenty-five days, seventeen of which had been passed in actual travelling, and eight in repose. CHAPTER V. SEGO. JOURNEY TO SILLA. RETURN AS FAR AS SEGO, the capital of Bambarra, consists of four distinct towns, two on the northern, and two on the southern, side of the Joli bahr, or Great river. They are all surrounded with high mud walls. The residence of the King of Bambarra is in one of the southern quarters, called Sego See Korro. He employs a number of slaves in conveying people over the river; and though the fare is only ten cowries for each person, he derives a considerable revenue from the ferry. When I arrived at the ferry, I found a great number of persons waiting for a passage; they looked at me with silent wonder. The boats were each formed of the trunks of two large trees, rendered concave, and joined end to end, the junction running across the middle of the boat. I observed four horses, and several people, in one that was crossing the river. There were three different places of embarkation, and the ferrymen were very expeditious; but, owing to the crowd of expectants, I could not immediately obtain a passage, and I sat down on the bank of the river, to wait for a more favourable opportunity. The extensive city, the numerous boats upon the river, the crowded population, and the cultivated state of the surrounding country, formed a picture of civiliza |