The Market Was Attended By Many Thousands Of People From Different Parts Of The Country.

Vast numbers of canoes, filled with people and goods, were passing from one side of the Niger to the other, and the countenances of both buyers and sellers betrayed a very anxious and business-like expression.

As soon as the curiosity of the Landers was fully satisfied, they crossed over to the Boossa side of the river, and landed at a small walled town called Garnicassa, which was inhabited by the Cumbrie people, and situated about five miles north of Boossa. At no great distance from this place, and within sight of it, all the branches of the Niger meet, and form a beautiful and magnificent sheet of water, at least seven or eight miles in breadth, and it excited the surprise of the Landers, to know what became of so extraordinary a body of water, for at Boossa, the river is no more than a stone's throw across, and its depth is in proportion to its narrowness, but about an hour's walk from thence, it again becomes a noble river, and maintains its width, it was reported, even to Funda. This singular fact favours the opinion, that a large portion of the waters of the Niger is conveyed by subterraneous passages from the town of Garnicassa to a few miles below Boossa.

The travellers pursued their journey along the banks of the Niger, although the path was filled with water, and broken up by the force of the rains. After an hour's ride they drew near to the walls of Boossa, and soon arrived at the drummer's house, which had been their former residence. Here they found the midiki on her knees to receive and welcome them back again to Boossa in the name of the king, but they were not permitted to enter and take possession of their old apartments, for the queen conducted them to other huts, which formed part of the cluster inhabited by the Fellatas. In the evening they were visited by the king, who said, he had been apprehensive that they required a little repose and quietness after their journey, and therefore he did not like to intrude on them before. They were not long domiciliated in their new dwelling, before they were informed that the drummer's wife had excited the envy of the queen, by wearing round her neck a smart gilt button, which had been given to her, and that was the only reason why they were not allowed to occupy their former lodgings in her house. Yet to be even with her fair rival, the queen had extracted from her little sheep-skin box, wherein they had been confined for a quarter of a century, a small number of round and flat golden ornaments, with which she adorned her sable bosom, and thereby totally eclipsed the transitory splendour of the button belonging to the drummer's wife.

In a conversation with the king, he intimated to them that it would be necessary for them to visit Wowow, previously to their going to Funda, because the prince of that state had already made war on Kiama on their account, and captured a few of the people. The king, himself, repeated to them the promise which he had made to their messenger, that he would furnish them with a canoe sufficiently large to contain the whole of their people and themselves; but still some doubts arose in their minds, and should a canoe be denied them, after all that the monarch had said, it was their determination to take a canoe of their own accord, and steal away from Boossa by night. The king expressed his fears that the personal safety of the travellers would be endangered by the Fellatas, who resided on each side of the river; but Pascoe answered his majesty by telling him, that the English were the gods of the waters, and no evil could befal them in boats, even though all Africa, or the whole world should fight against them. "I will, however," said the king, in reply, "go down and ask the Becken ronah (dark or black water, which the Niger is every where emphatically styled) whether it will be prudent and safe for the white men to embark on it or not, and I will be sure to acquaint you and them of my success, be it good or bad."

The following day the king intended to question the Niger, and the great hope of the Landers was, that the river would return a favourable answer.

The Landers were not ignorant that a present to an African king will generally effect wonders, it will even make the Niger return a favourable answer to an inquiry which, but for the present, would have been adverse. They therefore acted politically, and sent the king as a present, one of those beautiful silver medals which were cast during the American war, to which, was attached a large and valuable chain of the same metal; assuring the sable king at the same time, that he might now consider himself as the king of England's most particular friend, and that he could not make a more suitable return, than by assisting them them in their plan of journeying to the salt water by way of the Niger.

The present had the desired effect, for on the following day the king came to them with great joy, and informed them that he had been down to the Niger with his mallam, and that the result of his visit was highly favourable to their wishes as well as to his own, the river having promised to conduct them in safety its termination.

The Landers during their stay at Boossa, had to depend in great measure upon their own resources for their maintenance, their chief food consisting of guinea fowls and partridges, for their stock of articles, wherewith they could barter for provisions, was nearly exhausted. The market was already overstocked with buttons, needles were unsaleable; all their bits of coloured cloth were disposed of, and indeed almost every thing that would sell, reserving to themselves a few articles of some value as presents to the different chiefs along the banks of the Niger.

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