A great dearth of provisions prevailed, not only with regard to meat, but even corn, which was the more surprising to us, as we had been accustomed in Timbúktu to very low prices, although provisions are there brought from so great a distance. We were able in that town to buy a sheep for 500 or 600 kurdí, but we could here find none under 3000, the best fetching as much as 5000; and as for corn, the suníye, which we bought in Timbúktu for 3000 to 4000, we should have been glad to buy here with 10,000, if such large quantities had been brought into the market at all. It was, besides, extremely difficult for me to find shells. I was thus obliged to sell five dollars for 11,000 shells, while in Timbúktu they would have fetched 15,000. I also sold the corals which I had left at a low price, in order to be enabled to keep up my establishment. Cotton strips, which are liked better in the country places, were still dearer in proportion than shells. The horse which I rode myself being incapable of any further exertion, and my camels having either died or become totally exhausted, I was thus thrown, much against my inclination, upon the generosity of the prince, and in order to stimulate his good will, besides the present which I offered to him at my first interview, I gave him in a second audience ten dollars, silver being always an article much esteemed by these people. I had made it a point of reserving the last bernús I possessed for the governor of Kanó, who, in the present state of anarchy into which Bórnu seemed to be plunged, might be a person of great importance to me. But, nevertheless, I could not induce this not very high-spirited and noble-minded prince to make a sacrifice of a handsome horse, and he gave me an animal which, although it did not prove to be a bad travelling horse, was of small size, had a very bad walk, was not able to gallop at all, and altogether, was more like an ass than a horse. Besides a horse, ʿAlíyu was kind enough to send me a large loaf of English sugar,—a rather uncommon article in this country. I felt very grateful for this present, as I was entirely destitute of sugar. I had a good deal of trouble with my companions, who did not like to leave this place so soon as it was my intention to do. This extended not only to the messengers of the Sheikh, all of whom suffered a great deal from illness, but still more to my headman, ʿAlí el Ágeren, whom I would have sent away long before if I had been able to pay him off; for this man, who found it very convenient to trade at my expense, while he had nothing to do except to receive a good salary, entered into all sorts of intrigues to keep me in this place, just as he had done in Timbúktu.