The usurper, after the victory, found himself in peaceable possession of the throne; yet judging it right to maintain for a time the shew of moderation and self-denial, he employed that dissimulation for which his countrymen are famous, in persuading them that his affections were fixed on the blessings of futurity, and that he was indifferent to the splendour of empire. He refused even to see the treasures of his deceased brother, in gold, slaves, &c. and as he entered the interior of the palace drew the folds of his turban over his eyes, saying the temptation was too great for him, and invocating the Supreme Being to preserve him from its effects. For a certain time too he confined himself to the possession of four wives (free women) allowed by the law of the Prophet. At length, finding his claim unquestioned, and his authority firmly established, the veil of sanctity, now no longer necessary, was thrown aside, and ambition and avarice appeared without disguise. He now wastes whole days in misanthropic solitude, gazing in stupid admiration on heaps of costly apparel, and an endless train of slaves and camels, and revels in the submissive charms of near two hundred free women. Abd-el-rachmân assumed the Imperial dignity in the year of the Hejira 1202, of the Christian æra 1787. The discontent of the people however, and particularly of the soldiery in consequence of the severity of his regulations, and his personal avarice, were (1795) very much increasing, which made me imagine his reign would not be long. _History._ Mohammed Teraub, already mentioned, was preceded by a king named Abd-el-Casim; Abd-el-Casim by Bokar; Bokar by Omar. Some of the earlier kings are yet spoken of under the names of Solyman, Mohammed, &c. But as the people of the country possess no written documents, I found those of whom I inquired often at variance both with regard to the genealogy and the succession of their monarchs. In all countries these are points of small import; but especially in one of which so few particulars are known to us. It may yet be remarked, that they commonly mention the reign of Solyman, as the epocha when Islamism began to prevail in the country. Describing this Sultan, at the same time, as of the _Dageou_ race, which swayed the sceptre long before that of Fûr became powerful. Circumstances have inclined me to believe, that the reign of this prince must have been from one hundred and thirty to one hundred and fifty years ago. On what the natives relate of their early history, little dependence can be placed: but it seems that the _Dageou_ race came originally from the North, having been expelled from that part of Africa now, nominally at least, under the dominion of Tunis[46]. _Harvest, food, &c._