All These Blacks Used To Gaze On Me, As If I Had Been A
Prodigy, Having Never Seen A White Man Before.
Some took hold of my hands,
which they rubbed with spittle, to see if the whiteness was natural or
artificial, and expressed their wonder to find that my skin was not
painted.
They were as much astonished at my dress, being clothed in the
Spanish fashion, with a black damask waistcoat, and a cloak over it: They
seemed much surprised at the waistcoat, and greatly admired the woollen
cloth, which they had never seen any of before. My chief purpose in going
to these fairs, was to see what quantity of gold was brought thither.
Horses are very scarce, and of great value in the country of the Negroes,
being brought all the way from that part of Barbary which lies nearest to
Europe, by the Arabs and Azanhaji. Owing to the great heat, horses do not
live long here; for they grow so fat that they cannot stale, and so burst.
They are fed with bean leaves, which are gathered after the beans are
brought from the fields; and, being dried like hay, are cut small, and
given to the horses instead of oats. They give millet also, which
contributes greatly to make them fat. A horse and his furniture sells for
from nine to fourteen negroes, according to his goodness and beauty; and
when a negro lord buys a horse, he sends for his horse sorcerers, who
cause a fire to be kindled of the stalks of certain herbs, and hold the
horses head by the bridle over the smoke, while they repeat over some few
words by way of incantation.
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