However, the parcel which my servant brought me from Zínder was not quite devoid of subjects of gratification, as, besides a few letters from Europe, including a map of South Africa by Mr. Cooley, it contained two beautifully written Arabic letters, one addressed to ʿAlíyu, the emír of Sókoto, and the other, a general letter of recommendation addressed by Her Majesty’s consul in Tripoli to the chiefs of the Fúlbe. These letters I had expressly written for, and if I had received them two years earlier, they would have been of great service to me. As it was, I sent the letter destined for ʿAlíyu to the governor, who was so much pleased with it that he forwarded it by a special messenger, accompanied by a letter from myself, wherein I expressed my regret that I had not been able to present this letter to him on my personal visit, while at the same time I excused myself for not being able at the time to send him a small present, not having found here any supplies, and being entirely destitute of means. Having heard a report, which afterwards proved to be false, that the governor of Hamárruwa had formed the intention of attacking the people in the English steamer with a large force, I took the opportunity of protesting, in this letter, against such proceedings, giving the chief a plain statement of the peaceable intentions of the expedition. The parcel which my servant had brought me from Zínder seemed also to hold out the prospect of material aid; for the letter from Mr. Dickson, dated the latter part of 1853, wherein he at the same time informed me, to my great disappointment, that he was about to leave his post for the Crimea, contained two letters of recommendation to a couple of Ghadámsi merchants, of the names of Háj Áhmed ben Slímán and Mohammed ben Músa, who, as he informed me, had property of his own in their hands, in order to assist me in case I should be in want of money. But when I sent these letters to their destination they were very coldly received, and it was intimated to me that I could not be accommodated. The disappointment which the awkwardness of my pecuniary circumstances caused me, was soothed in some degree by the offer which the Fezzáni merchant Khweldi, whose kindness to me I have mentioned on a previous occasion, made me at the same time, of lending me 200 dollars in cash. In the afternoon of the 14th, a servant of his arrived with the money, which, however, did not suffice for my actual wants, as I had to return to Sídi ʿAlí the 111 dollars which he had paid to my servant ʿAlí el ʿAgeren. After having made a suitable present to the messenger, I had therefore only a very small sum remaining; and the disappointment which I had experienced with regard to my luggage, made me reluctant to forego the project which I had formed of taking home with me specimens of the manufactures of this place. I had also to buy two horses and a couple of camels, together with sundry other articles, and I was therefore obliged to procure