A woman, if she conceive herself neglected by her husband, may put the house of the latter into mourning; but, after she has made use of this privilege for a short time, the husband pacifies her by a present: it consists of a goat, some poultry, tobacco, and a bottle of brandy, towards her expences. The woman then becomes tractable, and the people reconcile her with her husband. This custom is very judicious on the part of the women, who like to avenge themselves and shew their authority: for while the mourning lasts, the husband cannot enjoy the society of his mistress. The drum is their principal instrument of music; they have three sorts of it, which differ in size according to the purposes for which they are used. One kind is made of hard wood, hollowed within: the two ends are stopped up, and a longitudinal hole is cut in the side. They strike it with two sticks, and the strong and acute sound which it sends forth, is heard in calm weather at a great distance, and is considered as the signal of alarm. Another kind is made of light wood, hollowed like the former, but the ends of which are covered with goat or sheep-skins, dried and lightly stretched by cords. Some of these drums are six or eight feet high, by two or three in diameter; and they occasionally have at their ends rows of sharks’ teeth or pieces of copper, which produce a tolerably loud tinkling. These people have likewise two kinds of stringed instruments, one of which is a sort of guitar, and the other resembles in shape a Welsh harp, but is only two feet high. The strings are made of the fibres of a plant combined with the hair of elephants’ tails. The women and children in their amusements produce a sound from gourds, in which they inclose some dry seeds. At Sherbro the natives reckon amongst their musical instruments a reed pipe pierced with four holes, and a trumpet made of an elephant’s tooth. The chief food of the people is rice, which they boil after it is dried, and season it with palm-oil, or with a strong sauce made from fish or meat, or from poultry or vegetables simmered together, and to which they add spices, pepper, and palm-oil. They eat very little meat, but what they do consume, they prefer smoked or boiled: they are, however, good cooks, and prepare their aliments in a very delicate manner. The men and women do not eat together, and they drink only water; they make but two meals a day, one at ten in the morning, and the other at sunset. The men, however, who are in easy circumstances, generally add another meal very early in the morning, which has been prepared over night by their favourite woman.