owing, as I suppose, to his strict observance of the fast, and the distress which he had recently suffered by the loss of his son. I shall here add a short description of the city of Sackatoo. I t is in lat. 13° 4' 52" N. and long. 6° 12' E. and is situate near the junction of an inconsiderable stream with the same river which flows past Zirme, and which, taking its rise between Kashna and Kano, is said to fall into the Quarra four days’ journey to the west. The name in their language signifies “ a halting place the city being built by the Felatahs after the conquest of Goober and Zamfra, as near as I could learn, about the year 1805. It occupies a long ridge which slopes gently towards the north, and appeared to me the most populous town I had visited in the interior of Africa ; for, unlike most other towns in Haussa, where the houses are thinly scattered, it is laid out in regular well built streets. The houses approach close to the walls, which were built by the present sultan in 1818, after the death of his father ; the old walls being too confined for the increasing population. This wall is between twenty and thirty feet high, and has twelve gates, which are regularly closed' at sunset. There are two large mosques, including the new one at present building by the gadado, besides several other places for prayer. There is a spacious market-place in the centre of the city, and another large square in front of the sultan’s residence. The dwellings of the principal people are surrounded by high walls, which enclose numerous coozees and flat-roofed houses, built in the Moorish style; whose large water-spouts of baked clay, projecting from the eaves> resemble at first sight a tier of guns. The inhabitants are principally Felatahs, possessing numerous slaves. Such of the latter as are not employed in domestic duties reside in houses by themselves, where they follow various trades ; the master, of course, reaping the profit. Their usual employments are weaving, house-building, shoe- making, and iron work : many bring fire-wood to the market for sale. Those employed in raising grain and tending cattle, of which the Felatahs have immense herds, reside in villages without the city. It is customary for private individuals to free a number of slaves every year, according to their means, during the great feast after the Rha- madan. The enfranchised seldom return to their native country, but continue to reside near their old masters, still acknowledging them as their superiors, and presenting them yearly with a portion of their earnings. The trade of Sackatoo is at present inconsiderable, owing to the disturbed state of the surrounding country. The necessaries of life are very cheap: butchers’ meat is in great plenty, and very good. The exports are principally civet and blue cheek tobes, called sharie, which are manufactured by the slaves from Nyflee, of whom the men are considered the most expert weavers in Soudan, and the women the best spinners. The common imports are Goora nuts, brought from the borders of Ashantee; and coarse calico and woollen cloth, in small quantities, with brass and pewter dishes, and some few spices from Nyflee. The Arabs, from Tripoli and Ghadamis, bring un wrought silk, otto of roses, spices, and beads: slaves are both exported and imported. A great quantity of Guinea corn is taken every year by the Tuaricks, in exchange for salt. The market is extremely well supplied, and is held daily from sunrise to sunset. On the north side of Sackatoo there is a low marsh, with some stagnant pools of water, between the city and the river: this, perhaps, may be the cause of the great prevalence of ague, as the city stands in a fine airy situation. May 4.—I left Sackatoo, accompanied by one of the gadado’s officers, named Dumbojee; and we travelled almost all night before we came up with our servants, who had pitched our tents near Kamoon. At daylight we moved on to the wells at Kamoon, where we halted to fill our water skins; and at two in the afternoon, the escort arriving, we proceeded on our journey, being also joined by four merchants and their slaves. We took a new road, where no water is to be had, to avoid the Tooias, as the rebels of Goobeer 2
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