TIMBUCTOO TO HOUSA.

There is a road by land from Timbuctoo to Housa, but on account of the expense it is not used by merchants: Shabeeny believes it is about 5 days' journey. If you go this way, you must cross the river before you reach Housa. They landed at the port of Housa, distant a day and a half from the town; their merchandise was carried from this port on horses, asses, and horned cattle; the blacks dislike camels; they say, "These are the beasts that carry us into slavery."

THE RIVER NEEL OR NILE.

HOUSA.

GOVERNMENT.

If the king has children, the eldest, if a man of sense and good character, succeeds; otherwise, one of the others is elected. The grandees of the court are the electors. If the eldest son be not approved, they are not bound to elect him; he has, however, the preference, and after him the other sons; but the choice of the council must be unanimous, and if no person of the royal line be the object of their choice, they may elect one of their own body. The members of the council are appointed by the king; he chooses them for their wisdom and integrity, without being limited to rank: the person appointed cannot refuse obedience to the royal mandate. The council consists of many hundreds. The governor who controls the police lives in the centre of the town.

THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE

LANDED PROPERTY.

REVENUES.

The king has 2 per cent. on the produce of the land. The revenues arise from the same sources as at Timbuctoo, but are much larger. Foreign merchants pay nothing, as the Housaeens think they ought to be encouraged. The revenue is supposed to be immense.

ARMY.

THE TRADE

Manufactures and husbandry are similar to those at Timbuctoo.

CLIMATE.

The hot winds blow from the east; the summer is hotter than in Marocco, and hotter at Timbuctoo than at Housa. The cold winds are from the west: the morning fog is great. He never saw it rain at Housa, in the course of two years; he says it never rains there. Scarcity is never known. A considerable part of their provisions is brought from the banks of the Nile; the river, when overflowing, never reaches above half way from its common channel towards Housa. They have excellent wells in their houses, but no river near the town.

ZOOLOGY.

He saw no camels at Housa, but heard, they use them to fetch gold, and cover their legs with leather, to guard them from snakes. They have dogs and cats, but no scorpions or snakes in their houses. Lice, bugs, and fleas abound. He saw no wild animals or fowl in the neighbourhood of Housa.

DISEASES.

Physicians agree with the patient for his cure. No cure no pay. The prevailing diseases are colds and coughs.

RELIGION.

The same as at Timbuctoo; the poorer classes, as in most countries, have many superstitious notions of spirits, good and bad, and are alarmed by dreams, particularly, the slaves, some of whom cannot retain their urine in the night, as he thinks, from fear of spirits, they take them often upon trial when they buy them, and if they have this defect, a considerable deduction is made in the price. A man possessed by a good spirit is supposed to be safe amidst 10,000 shot. A man guilty of a crime, who in the opinion of the judge is possessed by an evil spirit, is not punished! He never heard of a rich man being possessed.

PERSONS.

They are of various sizes, but the tallest man he ever saw was at Housa. The city being very large, he seldom had an opportunity of seeing the king, as at Timbuctoo. He saw him but twice in two years, and only in the courts of justice; he was remarkable for the width of his nostrils, the redness of his eyes, the smoothness of his skin, and the fine tint of his perfectly black complexion.

DRESS.

Like that of Timbuctoo, their turbans are of the finest muslin. The sleeves of the soldiers are small, those of the merchants wide. The former have short breeches, the latter long. The officers dress like the merchants, each according to his circumstances. The caftan is of silk, in summer, brought from India; instead of the silk cords worn by the king of Timbuctoo, the king of Housa wears two silk sashes, three fingers broad, one on each shoulder; they are richly adorned with gold; in one hangs his dagger, and when he rides out, his sword in the other; he wears not the silk pear in his turban, as does the king of Timbuctoo. The front of his turban is embroidered with gold.

BUILDINGS.

The houses are like those at Timbuctoo, but many much larger. They have no wind or water-mills, but they have stone mills, turned by horses.

MANNERS.

They never bow. An inferior kisses the hand of a superior; to an equal he nods the head, gives him his hand and asks him how he does. The women do the same.

GOLD.

The ground where it is found is about sixteen miles from Housa. They go in the night with camels whose legs and feet are covered to protect them against snakes, they take a bag of sand, and mark with it the places that glitter with gold; in the morning they collect where marked, and carry it to refiners, who, for a small sum, separate the gold. There are no mountains or rivers near the spot, it is a plain without sand, of a dark brown earth. Any person may go to seek gold; they sell it to the merchants, who pay a small duty to the king. The produce is uncertain; he has heard that a bushel of earth has produced the value of twelve ducats, three pounds sterling, of pure gold. They set out from Housa about two o'clock in the afternoon, arrive about sun-set, and return the next day seeking for gold during the whole night.

LIMITS OF THE EMPIRE

Beyond Timboo, on the north side of the Nile, are very extensive. Afnoo is subject to the king of Housa, no slaves can be made from thence. Darfneel is near Afnoo; the latter is on the north side of the river, nearer to its source, and a great way from Timbuctoo. No Arabs are found on the banks of the Nile. He supposes the circumference of the empire to be about twenty-five days' journey; has heard that many other large towns are dependent upon it, but does not remember their names.

The written character is very large, perhaps half an inch long. The empire is divided into provinces; the provinces into districts. The king appoints the governors of both; but the son of the deceased governor is understood to have the preference.

They make their pottery by a wheel, but do not glaze it. The wheel turns upon a pivot placed in a hole in the ground: at top and bottom are two pieces of wood like a tea-table; the lower, which is largest, is turned by the foot, and the upper forms the vessel. When they make a large pot, they put on the top a larger piece: the pots are dried in the sun or burnt in the fire. The iron mines are in the desert; the iron is brought in small pieces by the Arabs, who melt and purify it. They cannot cast iron. They use charcoal fire, and form guns and swords with the hammer and anvil. The points of their arrows are barbed with iron; the crossbows have a groove for the arrow. No man can draw the bow by his arm alone, they have a kind of lever; the bow part is of steel brought from Barbary, and is manufactured at Timbuctoo. They do not make steel themselves.

They believe the immortality of the soul, and that both men and women go to paradise; that there is no future punishment; the wicked are punished in this world. Happiness, after death, consists in being in the presence of God. They are not circumcised. A divorce may take place while a woman is pregnant, but she cannot marry again till delivered. As soon as a woman is divorced, midwives, women brought up to that profession, examine her to see whether she is pregnant.

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