The whole expense of his government is
defrayed, as I was told, by a tax upon merchandise, which is
collected at the gates of the city.
The city of Houssa (the capital of a large kingdom of the same name,
situated to the eastward of Timbuctoo), is another great mart for
Moorish commerce. I conversed with many merchants who had visited
that city, and they all agreed that it is larger - and more populous
than Timbuctoo. The trade, police, and government are nearly the
same in both; but in Houssa the negroes are in greater proportion to
the Moors, and have some share in the government.
Concerning the small kingdom of Jinbala I was not able to collect
much information. The soil is said to be remarkably fertile, and
the whole country so full of creeks and swamps that the Moors have
hitherto been baffled in every attempt to subdue it. The
inhabitants are negroes, and some of them are said to live in
considerable affluence, particularly those near the capital, which
is a resting-place for such merchants as transport goods from
Timbuctoo to the western parts of Africa.
To the southward of Jinbala is situated the negro kingdom of Gotto,
which is said to be of great extent. It was formerly divided into a
number of petty states, which were governed by their own chiefs; but
their private quarrels invited invasion from the neighbouring
kingdoms.
