A stranger, on hearing
the common conversation of two Foulahs, would imagine that they were
scolding each other. Their numerals are these:-
One, Go.
Two, Deeddee.
Three, Tettee.
Four, Nee.
Five, Jouee.
Six, Jego.
Seven, Jedeeddee.
Eight, Je Tettee.
Nine, Je Nee.
Ten, Sappo.
The industry of the Foulahs, in the occupations of pasturage and
agriculture, is everywhere remarkable. Even on the banks of the
Gambia, the greater part of the corn is raised by them, and their
herds and flocks are more numerous and in better condition than
those of the Mandingoes; but in Bondou they are opulent in a high
degree, and enjoy all the necessaries of life in the greatest
profusion. They display great skill in the management of their
cattle, making them extremely gentle by kindness and familiarity.
On the approach of the night, they are collected from the woods and
secured in folds called korrees, which are constructed in the
neighbourhood of the different villages. In the middle of each
korree is erected a small hut, wherein one or two of the herdsmen
keep watch during the night, to prevent the cattle from being
stolen, and to keep up the fires which are kindled round the korree
to frighten away the wild beasts.
The cattle are milked in the mornings and evenings: the milk is
excellent; but the quantity obtained from any one cow is by no means
so great as in Europe. The Foulahs use the milk chiefly as an
article of diet, and that not until it is quite sour. The cream
which it affords is very thick, and is converted into butter by
stirring it violently in a large calabash. This butter, when melted
over a gentle fire, and freed from impurities, is preserved in small
earthen pots, and forms a part in most of their dishes; it serves
likewise to anoint their heads, and is bestowed very liberally on
their faces and arms.
But although milk is plentiful, it is somewhat remarkable that the
Foulahs, and indeed all the inhabitants of this part of Africa, are
totally unacquainted with the art of making cheese. A firm
attachment to the customs of their ancestors makes them view with an
eye of prejudice everything that looks like innovation. The heat of
the climate and the great scarcity of salt are held forth as
unanswerable objections; and the whole process appears to them too
long and troublesome to be attended with any solid advantage.
Besides the cattle, which constitute the chief wealth of the
Foulahs, they possess some excellent horses, the breed of which
seems to be a mixture of the Arabian with the original African.
CHAPTER V - FROM KAJAAGA TO KASSON
The kingdom of Kajaaga, in which I was now arrived, is called by the
French Gallam, but the name that I have adopted is universally used
by the natives.
