as they call themselves. On his return home he sent us some wheat, of which we were in great want, with honey, and Goora nuts. By the advice of Mohamoud El Wordee, we sent a present of a few cloves, and a little cinnamon, in return; which, however small, is every where the proper acknowledgment on such occasions. On account of the scantiness of our own stock of every thing, we now heartily wished for no more presents. After the governor left us, we were waited upon by a Tripoline merchant, of the name of Hameda, a good-looking, civil sort of man, and extremely rich. He possessed no less than five hundred slaves, and had a great number of horses. He was second only to the governor in all Katagum, and had served with the Eelatahs in most of their wars. Referring to the result of the recent expedition, I remarked it would have been better if the Felatahs had not gone at all against the Bedites, who would now be emboldened in their depredations. He replied, the Eelatahs had become rich, and were now afraid of blows : it was otherwise with them when poor; their head men then led them to battle, dauntlessly braving danger and death, whereas now-a-days their chiefs lagged behind, and sent their people forward to the combat, who, in turn, dreaded a broken head as much as their superiors, and would ho longer fight, if it might anywise be avoided.—Hameda had occasion to consult Dr. Oudney, who strongly recommended his immediate return to Tripoli, to undergo a surgical operation. He seemed very grateful, and offered us his house, and whatever the country afforded. He sent milk for Dr. Oudney, and bazeen, or flour-pudding, for me. Bazeen is made of wheat, barley, or Guinea corn, and eaten with butter or sauce. Dr. Oudney underwent here, as usual, much fatigue,—more, indeed, than his strength was equal to ; for the news of our arrival spread before us, and at the different towns and villages through which we passed, they brought to us all the sick to be cured. Nor was it the sick alone who sought advice, but men and women, of all descriptions; the former for some remedy against impotency, and the latter to remove sterility. Many came for preventives against apprehended or barely possible calamities ; and, in anticipation of all the imaginable ills of life, resorted to us in full hope and confidence of our being able to ward them off. The women were particularly fanciful in these matters, and were frequently importunate to receive medicines that would preserve the affections of their gallants, ensure them husbands, or, what was highly criminal, effect the death of some favoured rival. The governor made us a present of three sheep, and sent the Arab merchants eight bullocks. Jan. 3.—Dr. Oudney was a little better, but still very weak. Having early prepared our presents, which consisted of one of our tea-trays, ten yards of red silk, an Indian palempore, or bed coverlet, a piece of white linen cloth, with gold stripes, of Egyptian manufacture, a pound of cinnamon, and a pound of cloves, we waited on the governor at eight o’clock in the morning, accompanied by Mohamoud El Wordee. We stopped about a quarter of an hour in the house of Hameda, till the governor was ready to receive us. When introduced, we found no parade of armed men, as at Kouka, and the other towns in Bornou. Duncowa was sitting under a rude canopy, on a low bank of earth about six feet square. There were only three old men with him. We shook hands, and sat down on the floor before him. He importunately laid hold of me, and wished me to sit by his side. I, however, declined so high an honour. We were presented with Goora nuts, and he repeated the promises he had made yesterday. When we displayed our presents, and explained the use of the tray, and what it was made of, he was highly delighted; and asked us if we wanted slaves, or what else, for every tiling he had or could procure was at our disposal. With regard to slaves, we told him a slave was unknown in England, and the moment one set foot on our shores, he was instantly free. We also explained our great endeavours to put
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