A highly interesting and delightful interruption to my protracted and involuntary stay in Wurno was caused by an excursion which I made to Sókoto. The first part of this road I had already become acquainted with on a former ride, which had extended as far as Dankému; but at that period, being more intent upon inhaling the fresh air than upon laying down the country, I had not paid much attention to the extensive cultivation of rice which is going on in this valley, while on this occasion the features of the country, and in particular this branch of cultivation, formed a special object of attraction to me. For it was the first time during my travels in Negroland that I had seen rice cultivated on a large scale; and as we were winding along the foot of the rocky hills to the south-east, crossing the various small channels which descend from them and afterwards join the greater rivulet which we saw at some distance on our right, the country became dotted with small villages, or “rugga,” as they are called by the Fúlbe, some of them of historical renown, such as Dághel or Dággel, the village where ʿOthmán the Reformer had his usual residence before he rose to that great political importance which he attained in after times. But such is the degraded state of these conquerors at the present time, that even this village, which, if they had the slightest ambition or feeling of national honour, ought to be a memorable and venerable place to them for all ages, has been ransacked by the Góberáwa, and lies almost deserted. It is at Dághel that the valley attains its greatest breadth; but as we advanced, in a south-westerly direction, it was narrower, till, at the village called Gída-n-mánomí, it became greatly contracted, shortly after which, the river turning away to a greater distance, the path ascended the rocks. It is the same path along which Clapperton, on his second journey, went so repeatedly from Sókoto to Magáriya, but which, from the scanty information obtained from his papers in this respect, has been laid down so very erroneously. In general, I cannot praise too highly the zeal and accuracy (allowance being made for his positions of longitude) with which this eminent and successful traveller, who crossed the whole breadth of the African continent between the Mediterranean and the Bight of Benín, has laid down his various journeys. On the other hand, the companion of his former travels, Major Denham, has shown great inaccuracy, both with respect to distances as well as to the direction of his various routes.