to the south, where they say the sea is; by Nyffé to the south-west; Guari and Kashna to the north and west. The environs of the city are beautiful, being formed of gentle ridges of land and plains; here and there fine large shady trees, and small streams of water; the rocky mounts to the north and south adding to the beauty of the scene. A small river, dry in summer, runs at a little distance from the eastward wall: its course is south. Friday, 14th.—Morning clear. No messenger having arrived from the governor, as was expected, I had the bullocks and camel loaded, and told Abdulkrum I would stay no longer, and if he attempted to stop me, it would be at his peril. He said there was not the least objection to my going; that, on the contrary, he would send a messenger of his own with me to Kano, and should accompany me part of the way. It was 8 A.M. before I was able to leave the town, Abdulkrum proceeding with me: he has behaved very well to me while I remained in Zaria, and is as decent a Fellata as I ever met with; and he is the only man in the place who bears a good name with strangers. Poor man, his secret came out at last. He was very earnest and rather bashful about it for a Mahometan. It was as usual with them who have too many wives: one, he said, was the governor’s daughter, and he was convinced I had medicine that would be of use to him. It was too serious a matter, and lay too near his heart, for me to laugh at him, or to say I had none; so I gave him a box of Seidlitz powders, the effervescing of which surprised him very much, desiring him to take one once a week. He was made perfectly happy, and fully believed in their virtue. It is the first time I have given medicine for such a disorder, generally laughing them out of asking me for such a thing. As he and I rode after the bullock, a great deal of our conversation was about England, which he, as well as a great many others here, declares to be a small island in the midst of the sea. I had hard work to convince him to the contrary. He then talked a great deal about the inferiority of the Christians to the true believers in battle. I told him he had never yet had Christians to deal with in battle, or he would tell another story. “Oh! do not say that,” says he; “did we not kill forty at Adamowa, and make all the rest run away?” I said they were all Mahometans and Arabs, not a Christian amongst them: but all I could say he would not be convinced, until I told him he lied like a thief, and whenever I saw Bello I should insist on his writing to the governors of the different provinces of Houssa, to inform their people of the truth of that affair: that it was Arabs and Mahometans, headed by Boobecker Bookaloom, who made the attack on Adamowa; and that they had, to save themselves, taken advantage of our being in Bornou at the time to throw it on our backs. Mr. Abdulkrum began to be a little alarmed at the earnestness of my language and threat,