more vast, yet they are not so thickly scattered. Thus along the whole line, from the upper Niger to Say, only a long thin thread of isolated settlements stretches out. On the contrary, in Kebbi, Futa Toro, Bondu, Futa Jalo, Masina, Hausa, and in Adamawa, a denser Pullo population is found. For Englishmen, in their endeavours to open communication along the Niger, this race is of the very highest importance; but it is very difficult to deal with, not only on account of the puritanic character of their creed, but also on account of their want of strong government and a durable political organization.

The Jolof, although distinguished from the greater part of the Fulbe by their dark black colour, as settled in the delta of the Senegal and Gambia, are only a different section of the same stock. The languages of those two tribes show affinity, and the same castes of degraded classes are observable. The Jolof are of beautiful physical development, but are fixed to the soil, show no enterprise, and have never become of any great historical importance, although at the beginning of the fifteenth century they were not quite powerless.

The Songhay (Leo's Sungai).-The Songhay are an interesting race on account of their great historical importance in the latter part of the fifteenth and the whole of the sixteenth century, and on account of their seats occupying the whole course of the Niger from below Say to far beyond Timbuktu. The Songhay appear to have entertained connexion with Egypt from ancient times, and have thence received Islam and a certain degree of civilization; but they have since decayed and become much degraded, so that at the present moment they are of no significance whatever. However, a few independent communities preserve still a considerable amount of energy. The Songhay language, miscalled Kissour by Caillie, is very poor and not developed, and shows scarcely any affinity to surrounding languages. Nevertheless the territory of that idiom still extends as far as Agades. However in general the dominion of this race is not vast, being limited mostly to the valley of the river, although originally Arawan and the whole of the district of Azawad were inhabited by Songhay. The population in the upper course of the Niger above Timbuktu is still tolerably dense, but in its lower course it is decimated by war, and the whole number of the Songhay may not exceed 2,000,000.

East on the Songhay border the Hausa people. This nation is of very great importance for the whole of North Central Africa; but, according to their language and complexion, they are an intermediate race between the Berbers and Negroes. The Hausa are full of intelligence, liveliness, and of cheerful social disposition, very industrious, and of the greatest importance for Europeans in their endeavour to open Central Africa for legitimate commerce; but they show no strong political organization, and have never been able to form a strong kingdom of their own. In former times they fell an easy prey to the kings of Songhay, Bornu, or Kororrofa, and more recently were almost entirely subdued by the Fulbe. Only small remains of national independence are to be met with at the present day in Gober, Maradi, and Zanfara; but the struggle between the original inhab

tants of those districts and the conquering tribe of the Fulbe is constantly going on. The Hausa language is the most beautiful, sonorous, rich and lively, of all the languages of Negroland; but it is defective in the verbal tenses.

The Kanuri, or Bornu, are a remarkable race of vast historical importance, of a dominating disposition, not very enterprising nor commercial, but of a steady character, and thus well fitted for their central position. They are not so capable of adopting foreign elements as the Hausa race. Their language is allied in grammar to the Mongolian languages, and is very rich in grammatical forms. The Kanuri race is greatly deteriorated by intermixture with Slaves and other tribes. The original Kanuri race are much finer people, of taller and more slender growth, lips less thick, nose less flattened. Real Kanuri, including the Manga, there may be from 3,000,000 to 4,000,000; but the Bornu kingdom comprises a great many different races, such as the Kutoko and the industrious inhabitants of the southern borders of the Chad, the Bedde, Marghi, and many others. I here next will mention the race of the Tebu, or rather Teda, on account of their intimate relationship with the Kanuri, but who, owing to the character of their seats, scattered as they are over an immense expanse of desert, have preserved their original condition. The Teda-Te-da-I have no doubt are identical with the Ber-doa of Leo, the Lubim of Scripture, and the Rubi of the Egyptian monuments. The seats of the Tebu correspond to those of the Berbers or Tawareck in the western half of the desert; but the Tebu are of far less importance than the Berbers. Only the Zaghawa, that section of this tribe nearest to Nubia and Dongola, made an attempt in the thirteenth century to found a kingdom of their own; but they soon became dependent on Kanem, and afterwards on the kingdom of Fittri, or, as Leo calls it, Gaoga. The Tebu are divided into a great many factions and tribes without any connection with each other (see vol. iii., Appendix, p. 494). They are scattered over the whole eastern half of the desert, inclosed between the Nile on the east side, Dar Fur, Wadai, and Kanem towards the south, the road by Buna towards the west, and Kebabo or Kuffara, towards the north, and are greatly addicted to desultory warfare and to forays. Only that section of the Tebu which is settled in the Wadi Kawar, between Fezzan and Bornu, is of some importance for the commerce of the Bilna road; but they are not even able to dominate this commercial high road and to secure it against the predatory incursions of the Tawarek.

The whole number of the Tebu probably does not exceed 1,000,000. I now retrace my steps westwards and first say a word about the Yoruba-Nufe nations, settled in a most important position on both sides of the lower course of the Niger, and of great importance as well on account of their geographical position as with regard to their industrial character and their aptitude for commercial pursuits, although their political as well as their social well-being has suffered a great deal from the conquests and the encroachments of the Fulbe. The Nufe have excelled in industry from very remote times, and

rival the inhabitants of Kano in the arts of weaving and dyeing, while the Yoruba people, especially on account of their situation between the swampy and unhealthy delta of the Niger and the shore of the bight of Biafra, are of the greatest importance to Europeans in their endeavour to open intercourse along the river. The work begun by the missionaries has been successfully pursued by Dr. Backie's party. Rev. Crowther himself is a noble specimen of the degree of intellectual development of which the Yoruba race is capable. With regard to the amount of population, the Nufe perhaps may number 1,500,000, the Yoruba 2,000,000 to 3,000,000 inclusive of those that have become subjected to the Fulbe.

West of Yoruba are the kingdoms of Dahome and Asanti, or Ashanti, with their homogeneous races, both of considerable temporary importance, but, as it appears, of very little value for the future well-being of the whole interior. Moreover, the power of Dahome is fast crumbling to ruin, and Forbes and Duncan estimate the population of Dahome proper at not more than 200,000. The king of Dahome is perhaps the most despotic king in the world, and the Dahomians real barbarians. The Ashanti, who belong to a larger group of people constituting the O'chi race, seem to unite the greatest contrasts the utmost barbarity with a certain degree of intelligence and human superiority. The population of Asanti and the tributary provinces may amount to about 3,000,000. Between the Asanti, the country of the Wangarawa, and the Songhay, there is a group of races comprising, besides some smaller factions, the larger tribes of the Tombo Mosi, and Gurma. Of these tribes the Mosi are of paramount importance, having been from very ancient times the champions of Paganism against Islamism, and besides their warlike disposition, being remarkable for a considerable commercial activity with regard to the trade of the interior, the people of Yadega providing the markets of Sofari and Jinni, and those of Bussumo those in Libtako. In the latter half of the fifteenth and in the sixteenth century the Tombo were not less powerful than the inhabitants of Mosi*. The Mosi market, Kulfela, is of high renown and of great importance it is constantly visited by Hausa traders. The Portuguese opened communication with the king of Mosi, and although at the present time the power of the nominal liege lord of the whole country, who resides in Woghodogho, is very small, yet some of the residences of the most powerful chiefs seem to be well adapted for missionary stations, if the Christian nations wish to put a stop to the progress of Islamism in those regions.

I now again turn eastward, and passing over the little industrious and clever community of Logon or Loggone, who originally formed merely a portion of the large tribe of Masa, I come to the Bagirma, or inhabitants of Bagirmi, a race distinguished by their fine type

* In the chronological table, affixed to the fourth volume of my "Travels," p. 595, to the date of the year 1488, after the first mention of the name Mosi that of Tombo is to be added; and farther on, the name Tombo has to be substituted for that of Mosi.

and their warlike disposition, and not at all devoid of industrial habits, but blood-thirsty and cruel. This was the origin of much civil war, which prostrated the country and laid it at the mercy of the more powerful kingdoms-Wadai on the one side and Bornu on the other.

Wadai, a powerful kingdom, but the different elements of which are as yet not well digested: the ruling tribe the Maba. But the kingdom comprises a great diversity of tribes, besides which a very numerous Arab population has immigrated from the east. However, the situation of Wadai is not at all favorable for commercial purposes, although in Leo's time there was considerable trade from Fettri to Nubia, and the soil of the northern provinces is dry, stony, and not very fertile. To the south there are several shallow watercourses. The population of the whole kingdom may amount to about 5,000,000; but it does not contain any large towns.

Fur, or Dar-Fur.-People clever, capable of political organization; but the state of society is effeminate. The character of the country is something like an oasis, comprising isolated plantations. There is considerable trade; but the neighborhood of the Turkish dominions is a great drawback, and the commercial high-road to Egypt and Siut is often shut. The allegiance of the southern provinces is very precarious, while Fur Proper probably does not contain more than 1,000,000 inhabitants, and perhaps much less.

I will not speak about the Turkish dominions, including Kordofan, nor about the various states of Abyssinia. There is scarcely any connexion of Abyssinia with the rest of Negroland.

I will only say a word about the Pagan nations to the south, the whole region of which the Wadai people call Jeankhera, the Furawi Fertit. In general these pagan tribes do not constitute any very powerful communities; but there are a few exceptions of large pagan kingdoms to the north of the Equator, such as Banda or Dar Banda to the south of Wadai, Andoma to the south-east of Bagirmi: for these seem to be the strongest. The Fulbe have broken up the kingdom of the Batta in A'damawa, which in former times was of some importance. The Batta are even now greatly distinguished for their intelligence and their industrious pursuits, as well as their fine bodily development, and they are of great importance on account of their position near the confluence of the Benuwe and Faro.

I shall now make a few general remarks about the density of population and population in general.

III. Population.-It is easily understood that an exact statistical account of the population of these regions is as yet impossible and quite out of the question. In general the population is far more dense than it is at present found in Morocco or Algeria, and we may establish the following rule, namely, that the Pagan countries and the strong Mahommedan kingdoms are very populous; but that, on the contary, the border regions between different dominions, especially between Mahommedan and Pagan states, are more or less depopulated, and in consequence covered with dense forest.

The most populous districts which I visited in the Mahommedan countries are:

The territory of Kano, the country of Kebbi between Sokoto and the Niger; and among the Pagan countries, the territory of Musgu, although depopulated by continual forays. Besides, according to the information which I collected in Timbuktu, there is a very densely inhabited tract along the banks of the Niger, between Timbuktu and Jinni.

In the whole of this region polygamy prevails as well among the Mahommedans as among the pagans.

Among the Musgu, whose numbers are constantly descimated by war, scarcely a single head of a family is found with less than five

wives.

In Hausa and Bornu, the common men have often two wives, but rarely more.

The Fulbe of Hamdaallahi, besides their other reforming tendencies, wanted to restrict the number of wives, and to substitute for the permitted tessarogamy of Islamism bigamy.

The Tawarek in general have only one wife, and the same principle prevails in most of the Moorish tribes.

Numerous families are only seen with very rich and wealthy people, one and the same woman very rarely bearing more than four children; but, with princes, families of one hundred children and above, are nothing uncommon.

The advantage of this state of society is that there are no spinsters, every woman being useful in a household on one account or other. The drain upon the population by war and slavery is very great. Epidemic diseases on the contrary are very rare.

Commercial importance.-Such an importance is either based on the great fertility of the soil, or on the favorable position on a great navigable river, or on a commercial high-road, or again on the industrial capacity of the inhabitants, or at length, where all these three causes are united. These conditions, however, may exist, but there may be wanting a strong government, such as is necessary for commercial intercourse. Within the limits of Negroland itself we find, for the first time, all these requisites united in the upper course of the Niger; for here we find not only the two principal conditions of African commerce, which in the beginning of trade formed the two chief staple commodities of exchange, viz., gold and salt; but besides, we meet also with that most essential article for civilized life, clothing; and already in the eleventh century we see that the inhabitants of Sama were celebrated for their calico, or rather their strips of cotton, and it is very remarkable that this article bore at that time the same name which at the present day is given to European calico, viz., shigge. In the course of time, at the beginning of the sixteenth century, we find this same industry transplanted farther eastward to Zanfara, while the inhabitants of Gober, at the same time, were famous on account of their leather work and their shoes, and, together with the art of weaving, that of dyeing, which especially imparts a tint of a certain civilization to many African communities, was soon