As soon as we had breakfasted, we went about the important business of marketing. Maranga, as is Kikuyu generally, is extraordinarily rich and fertile. All kinds of grain are exceedingly plentiful. Among those brought to us for sale were millet (_Panicum Italicum_), called by the natives “metama;” _Pennisetum spicatum_, known as “mwele,” a seed resembling linseed, which grows on a close spike like a bulrush flower; _Eleusine corocana_, known as “uimbe;” and “muhindi,” or “dhurra” (maize). A large variety of edible roots is also cultivated, the most common being “viazi” (sweet potatoes), “vikwer” (yams), and “mahogo” (manioc). Sugar-cane was very largely grown, and is known to the natives as “mewa.” The stalks of metama, which are called “kota,” are also chewed by the natives on account of the sweetish sap. The half-grown stalks of the same plant are known as “metama m’tindi.” “N’dizi” (bananas) are also extensively cultivated, but we never ate any, as they are never allowed to ripen. The natives pluck them while they are green and hard, and roast them in hot ashes. When cooked they have the appearance and taste of a floury potato, though with a slightly astringent flavour. Wild honey was procurable in moderate quantities. It is called “assala,” evidently derived from the Arabic word for the same substance, “assal.” The Masai name for honey is “naischu,” the word generally used in Kikuyu. At certain seasons of the year the staple diet of the natives is “kundu” (beans), of which we saw two varieties, viz. “maragua,” a small white bean like a haricot, and “baazi,” a black bean which grows in pods on a small tree like a laburnum. They also grow several kinds of gourds, named respectively “mumunye,” which resembles a vegetable marrow in size and appearance, “kitoma,” a small, round kind, and “tikiti,” a small water-melon. It will be observed that we did not lack variety. We bought large quantities of m’wele, which our Swahilis at first refused to eat: they said it was “chickens’ food.” They knew better afterwards. We also procured some “mazewa” (fresh milk) for ourselves. Food was comparatively cheap. A “makono” of cloth or a handful of beads bought several “kibabas” of grain or beans. A kibaba equals about a pint. The term “makono” (meaning, literally, a hand) is applied to the measure of the forearm from the tip of the elbow to the end of the second finger, generally about eighteen inches. Four makono equal one “doti” (about two yards), and twenty-five yards or so make a “jora” or “piece” of cloth. The beads most in demand were the small red Masai beads known as “sem-sem.” We did not part with any wire, as we wanted it for the districts farther north.