The country which we then entered was hilly, tolerably well cultivated, and thickly inhabited. It was adorned here and there with the baobab tree, and a fine leafy tree called here “harúna.” But we made only a short march, being induced, on account of the danger of the road before us, to take up our quarters in a farming-village, situated in a very rich tract of country, behind a flat-topped cone, at the distance of a little more than four miles from Champaláwel. Notwithstanding the fertility of the district, no corn was to be obtained here at present, the last year’s harvest having failed entirely, so that the people were obliged to supply their own wants at Bosebángo. This scarcity is increased generally in districts where only one species of corn is grown, all the produce here being reduced to millet; while where various grains are raised, which ripen at different seasons, even in these countries, dearth cannot prevail to such an extent and for so long a time. All the inhabitants, including even the head man, belonged to the native Gurma race. All the cattle-breeding is in the hands of the Fúlbe, who regard “the cow as the most useful animal in creation,”—“negge ngombúri déya fó náfa;” and, there being no such people in the neighbourhood, no milk was to be obtained. The dwelling where I was lodged, with its numerous compartments and courtyards, presented quite a labyrinth of itself. Three servants of Galaijo, all armed with muskets, had attached themselves to my troop; and I supplied each of them here with ball cartridges, in case of any attack on the road. [Sidenote: Thursday, June 30th.] We had a long day’s march before us, through the unsafe wilderness which separates the reduced dominion of the chief of the Tórobe from the territory of Yágha. It was a fine morning, and tolerably clear. Corn- fields now and then interrupted the dense growth of talha trees and prickly underwood, while occasionally a baobab or a tamarind tree gave greater variety to the scenery. About four miles and a half from our starting-point we passed, on the right of the path, some peculiarly constructed smelting-furnaces, about six feet high and a foot and a half in diameter at the base. The proceeding is very simple and unsophisticated. On the ironstone is placed a large quantity of wood- ashes, till the metal begins to melt, and is then, by means of three channels at the bottom of the furnace, received in a basin. [Illustration]