Saturday, 26th.—Last evening I had a long and severe fit of the ague, which continued on me until daylight. In the morning it came on to rain, thunder, and lighten, which continued until near noon, when it cleared up. I had the camels loaded, giving the head man of the town twenty-seven gora nuts, as he had sent me a young sheep, plenty of milk, and corn for my horse. Left Gongodi; the path winding through plantations of millet, doura, cotton, and indigo here and there dispersed in the woods. Crossed a small river, and several streams whose courses were to the eastward. The soil a red clay mixed with sand, and only scraps of rock, of clay ironstone, and large blocks of granite. The water from the leaves of the trees made us all wet, and one time I had nearly lost my eye by the branch of a tree while looking at my compass; as it was, I got my face badly torn. At 2.30 P.M. it came on to rain, and being close to the town of Koki, I halted for the night. The walls of this town are also falling to decay; but I observe with pleasure that as the walls have fallen the houses appear to have increased. I was provided with as good a house as the place afforded, and was plentifully supplied with provisions. Sunday, 27th.—Clear morning, with light flying clouds. At 6.30 A.M. left Koki. I gave the head man thirty gora nuts, as he had given me a plentiful supply of milk, and millet for my horse and camel. The road was excessively wet, being nearly every step midleg deep, and very slippery. The decayed ant-hills not being seen, the camels several times sunk up to their bellies, when they had to be unloaded. I constantly rode behind them, both for the safety of myself and horse, as also to render that assistance and encouragement to my servants which was necessary, who certainly suffered much, having to wade by the side of the camels the whole way. Thank God! not one fell sick, or uttered the least complaint. I sent the Kano messenger on a-head, as I heard the gadado was on his way to Kano, and only a day or two distant from me, to request he would detain the governor of Adamowa until my arrival, as that person had only left Kano a few days before me with his retinue; and, in the event of my joining him, I should not have any occasion to wait at the town of Torri for an escort to conduct me through the woods of Goudami. At 11.30 passed the town of Duncamie; after which the roads were the worst I have ever seen, or rather, in fact, there were no roads at all. Every where the surface was a swamp, the men sometimes up to their middles in water for half an hour at a time; the path leading through fields of millet and doura. Thus the road continued until 5.30, when it came on to rain, thunder, and lighten. My servants stripped to the buff, and put their shirts under the hides that covered the baggage, to preserve them dry until they halted. I got wet to the skin, yet had a burning thirst—at times hardly able to sit on horseback, until relieved by vomiting.