I received numerous visits from Foulahs, who brought me their usual presents of milk and rice, which were all they had to give. The festival was celebrated with considerable gaiety. The Mandingoes, in particular, indulged in tumultuous manifestations of joy. They fired several discharges of musketry, and afterwards all the negroes assembled round my guide’s hut and sang songs in his praise. He was, as I have already mentioned, the chief of the caravan, and it was he who furnished the gunpowder for the rejoicings. These people have a bad habit of putting too great a charge of powder into their muskets, and on this occasion one of them burst in the hands of a negro; but fortunately, the poor fellow was not hurt. About eleven in the forenoon Ibrahim, accompanied by the two Mandingoes who were engaged in the dispute to which I have already alluded, came to invite me to partake of their dinner, and they again requested me to forget what had passed. I accepted the invitation. On entering Ibrahim’s hut, I saw a large calabash full of boiled rice, upon which was laid a considerable quantity of the beef. We sat down and each helped himself with his hands, according to the negro custom. When the rice was finished, Ibrahim distributed the meat. I observed that the Mandingoes ate an unusual quantity that day. Eating, indeed, seems to be the highest pleasure they are capable of enjoying. During the rest of the day they were very merry, and they exchanged the bullock’s hide for some rice, which we ate during our journey. On the 29th of April, the remainder of the meat which had been smoked all night was put into leather bags, and we resumed our journey at six in the morning. Opposite to the village, about half a mile to the north, there was a small chain of mountains, with level summits; and at each extremity of the chain one rises to a considerable height above the rest, like the turret of an ancient castle. These mountains have no vegetation. We proceeded for a mile eastward, upon rocks level with the surface of the ground, of a reddish colour and porous nature, and we next ascended a mountain composed of blocks of beautiful black granite, among which grew various large trees particularly the nédé, which abounds throughout all this part of the country. The road was very bad; we had to walk upon black calcined stones, which had the appearance of being of volcanic origin. After crossing several little streams that flow over beds of rock, we came to a mountain about five or six hundred ordinary paces high. It is called by the natives Touma, and it separates the country of Irnanké from the Fouta-Dhialon. We rested for a short time on its summit. My companions assured me that the road thence to Cambaya, my guide’s village, would be better than the preceding part of our journey. I observed in this neighbourhood some very fine indigo, and some bombaces which rivalled in size the enormous baobabs on the banks of the Senegal.