Then the Kadi, the Muftis, the Ulemas, the Shereefs, and other great people, each according to his rank, squat down on the ground before the Sultan, between whom and the crowd is a row of seven interpreters, ranged one behind the other. Amongst the Forians the people begin by uttering their salutations; but in Wadaï no one speaks before the Sultan. The interpreters repeat his words, saying: “Kadi, the Sultan salutes thee; Ulemas of Islam, the Sultan salutes you;” and so on through all the various ranks until they come to the people. The individuals of each category, as soon as they have been addressed, clap their hands and incline their heads even to the earth, at first on the right hand and then to the left. During this ceremony, and almost without interruption, the baradieh and tambourine resounds behind the Sultan, and whenever its notes are strengthened the whole assembly accompanies it by a gentle clapping of hands. At the same time the soldiers, who are ranged standing round the crowd, brandish and strike together the iron rods which they hold in each hand. This beating of the tambourine, this clapping of hands, this clashing of weapons, is mingled, moreover, with the cries of the soldiers, who shout out, “Glory to thee, O Sultan! Buffalo of intrepidity! May God make thee victorious over our enemies,— thee, our master!” All these sounds make a strange and savage concert. The Kabartou form a choir who in public ceremonies sound the trumpet and beat the tambourine; they also act as executioners. In the weekly assemblies they sit on a slightly-raised platform, some of them furnished with long trumpets, which assist in increasing the clamour. When the music ceases to play, the Turguenak advance, armed with clubs, the knobs of which are covered with iron. They wear steel headpieces, and most of them have coats of mail, whilst others have a thick-padded tunic, to protect them in battle against arrows. Each company is headed by two drums, which are beaten with tremendous violence. They march through the crowd, and then round between it and the Sultan, making as if they would strike the spectators, and crying: “Ask pardon of God and the Prophet.”