He Inquired How Many Wives An Englishman Had.

On being told only one, he seemed much astonished, and laughed greatly, as did all his people.

"What does he do," said he, "when one of his wives has a child? Our caboceer has two thousand!!"

On leaving Chaka, the caboceer escorted them several miles, attended by upwards of two hundred of his wives, one of whom was young and handsome. The country was now extremely beautiful, clear of wood, and partly cultivated; and a number of Fellata villages were passed, the inhabitants of which live here as they do in most other parts of Soudan, a quiet and inoffensive pastoral life, unmolested by the black natives, and not interfering with their customs.

The next stage led to Koosoo, the largest town they had yet seen, surrounded with a double wall, and containing at least twenty thousand people. This place appears to stand at the northwestern termination of the granite range, the outer wall extending from some rugged hills on the S.E., to a great distance in the plain. Here the same favourable impression respecting the whites was found to prevail as at Chaki. The walls were crowded with people, and the caboceer, with his wives and head men, came forth to welcome the strangers. He was glad, he said, to see white men coming to his country, and going to see his king, adding that he never expected to see this day, and that now all the wars and bad palavers would be settled. He presented to them yams, eggs, a goat, a sheep, a fine fat turkey, and milk, and a large pig was sent by the caboceer of a neighbouring town. The country was described as being on every side full of large towns. Its aspect continued through the next stage very beautiful, and well cultivated. The route lay in a parallel line with the hills as far as the town of Yaboo, and then entered a fine plain, studded with Fellata villages, extending to Ensookosoo. At Sadooli, half an hour further, the range of hills was seen bearing from E. by S. to S. The well cultivated country continued as far as Aggidiba, but a considerable change then took place in its general aspect. The road led through a wood of low, stunted, scrubby trees, on a soil of gravel and sand, and the destructive ravages of the Fellatas now became apparent, in the half deserted towns and ruined villages. Akkibosa, the next town, was large, and surrounded inside the walls with an impenetrable wood. It was here that Lander again had the melancholy prospect of seeing himself a lonely wanderer in the wilds of Africa, for Captain Clapperton became worse than he had been since leaving Badagry. The pain in his side was relieved by rubbing the part with a piece of cord, after some Mallegeta pepper chewed had been applied to it. But the caboceer of Adja gave our traveller some medicine, which was far more efficacious. It tasted like lime juice and pepper, and produced nausea to such a degree, that Clapperton was unable to stand for half an hour after; he then suddenly got well, both as to the pain in his side, and a severe diarrhoea, which had troubled him for some time. The worthy caboceer, who had shown himself such an adept in practical pathology, was of the same opinion with others of his species, that a preventive is better than a remedy; but were this principle to be acted upon by the medical caboceers of the metropolis of England, we should not see them driving in their carriages from 10 A.M. to 4 P.M. to convince a set of dupes, that a few latinized words and hieroglyphics scrawled on a scrap of paper, which is to produce for them a nauseous compound of aperient drugs, are to save them from the jaws of death. Captain Clapperton was in reality ill, and therefore the application of the prescription of the scientific caboceer of Adja, was perhaps advisable, on the ground that if it did not cure it would kill, but the case was differently situated with Lander, for although his health had sustained some severe shocks, yet it was good in comparison to that of his master; but the prudent caboceer considered that although he was not then actually ill, yet the possibility, and even the probability existed that he might become so, and therefore it was determined that the same medicine should be administered to Lander, as had been done to his master. Lander, however, protested that he did not stand in need of so potent a medicine, on the other hand, the caboceer protested that he was a great fool to entertain any such an opinion, and following the practice of the celebrated Dr. Sangrado, Lander was obliged to undergo the purgatory of the caboceer's medicine, and he was ready to admit that he did not feel himself the worse for it after its effects had subsided. The town of Adja is remarkable for an avenue of trees, with a creeping briar-like plant ascending to the very tops, and hanging down so as to form an impenetrable defence against every thing but a snake, and it is impossible to burn it. Leaving their medical friend, the caboceer of Adja, they proceeded to Loko, which is also a considerable walled town; and on proceeding about four miles further, they came to a groupe of three towns, one walled and two without walls, all bearing the name of Soloo.

The approach to the town of Tshow was through a beautiful valley, planted with large shady trees and bananas, having green plots and sheets of water running through the centre, where the dingy beauties of Tshow were washing their well-formed limbs, while the sheep and goats were grazing around on their verdant banks. This state of repose is stated, however, to be frequently disturbed by inroads from the neighbouring kingdom of Borgho, the natives of which are described as thieves and plunderers, and as the travellers were now close on its borders, they thought it necessary to brush up their arms.

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