Friday, 10th.—This morning the king’s brother accompanied me outside the town. I sent by him a letter to Mr. Houtson, to tell the king of Yourriba he had behaved very ill in not sending a proper messenger; that the one he had sent was not the Kiama messenger, but the butcher’s son of Algi, and that in no one point had he performed his promise to me. We halted at the village of Watatoo, where I was lodged in one of the best houses; this village had also shared the fate of Algi, having been burnt down by the Fellatas, and the inhabitants were just returning to their homes. The country between Watatoo and Algi is cultivated in a number of places, and planted with cotton, yams, and maize, and is diversified by hill and dale: the hills are low and rocky; the rocks of a fine-grained sand-stone. In the evening the head man of the village made me a present of four fowls and some yams. Saturday, 11th.—Cool and cloudy; during the night, heavy storm of wind, with thunder and lightning. At daylight I had every thing ready for starting; the butcher’s son having arrived last night, mounted on a little mare, with a saddle, and he without shoes or boots. On leaving Watatoo, I gave the two head men of the village a fathom of blue cloth each, as they had been as good as their circumstances would admit, and they promised to send every thing after me as soon as possible. In about fifteen minutes after leaving Watatoo, I arrived at and crossed the river Moussa, which formerly divided the kingdoms of Yourriba, and Borgoo: it was dry in a great many places, with a very rocky bed; when full, about thirty yards in breadth; and runs apparently with a very strong current. They say, it is the same river I passed on the road to Tshow, on the north side of the hills, and enters the Quorra opposite Nyffee, and near Rakah. After crossing, I travelled through thick woods for an hour, when I halted at a few huts on the north side of the river, called Bori, until the baggage should arrive. A hut stood apart from the rest, near the banks of the river; the grass and weeds carefully cleared away from around it. The messenger and people who were with me went one after another to say their prayers; which they did, by lying down, with their foreheads towards the door, which was secured by a mat: they appeared to be very devout, and having finished their prayers, slipped a few cowries inside the mat. I asked if I might go and look in, but they would not allow me. I asked them who they prayed to: they said, to the God that gave them plenty of water, corn, and yams. They say there are great numbers of hippopotami and crocodiles in the river during the time that it is full. The carriers, with the baggage, came up very slowly, and the heaviest loads were mostly carried by old women; and I could not help noticing the cold-blooded indifference of the young men, who would not give the poor old creatures the least assistance: however, I made them carry the heaviest loads,