With
his hand to keep at a distance; upon which one of the king's people
called out to the strangers to give some account of themselves.
They said that "they were natives of Toorda, a neighbouring village,
and had come to that place to gather tomberongs." These are small
farinaceous berries, of a yellow colour and delicious taste, which I
knew to be the fruit of the rhamnus lotus of Linnaeus.
The lotus is very common in all the kingdoms which I visited; but is
found in the greatest plenty on the sandy soil of Kaarta, Ludamar,
and the northern parts of Bambarra, where it is one of the most
common shrubs of the country. I had observed the same species at
Gambia.
As this shrub is found in Tunis, and also in the negro kingdoms, and
as it furnishes the natives of the latter with a food resembling
bread, and also with a sweet liquor which is much relished by them,
there can be little doubt of its being the lotus mentioned by Pliny
as the food of the Libyan Lotophagi. An army may very well have
been fed with the bread I have tasted, made of the meal of the
fruit, as is said by Pliny to have been done in Libya; and as the
taste of the bread is sweet and agreeable, it is not likely that the
soldiers would complain of it.
We arrived in the evening at the village of Toorda; when all the
rest of the king's people turned back except two, who remained with
me as guides to Jarra.
February 15. - I departed from Toorda, and about two o'clock came to
a considerable town, called Funingkedy. As we approached the town
the inhabitants were much alarmed; for, as one of my guides wore a
turban, they mistook us for some Moorish banditti. This
misapprehension was soon cleared up, and we were well received by a
Gambia slatee, who resides at this town, and at whose house we
lodged.
February 16. - We were informed that a number of people would go from
this town to Jarra on the day following; and as the road was much
infested by the Moors we resolved to stay and accompany the
travellers.
About two o'clock, as I was lying asleep upon a bullock's hide
behind the door of the hut, I was awakened by the screams of women,
and a general clamour and confusion among the inhabitants. At first
I suspected that the Bambarrans had actually entered the town; but
observing my boy upon the top of one of the huts, I called to him to
know what was the matter. He informed me that the Moors were come a
second time to steal the cattle, and that they were now close to the
town.
